//------------------------------// // The First Day (It's Just A Shot, Right?) // Story: Ponid-21 // by Cadenzel Washington //------------------------------// ??? I opened my eyes, my body still groggy from last night’s dream. I got down from my bed and sauntered over toward the mirror in my room. I stood up on my hindlegs in order to get enough height to get a proper look at my reflection. There it was plain as day, a purple horse face. A pony face. My face.  My hair...my mane rather, was a deep purple with a bright pink highlight and combed to be very straight. A large horn spiraled out of my forehead like someone jammed a waffle cone into my forehead and it pushed down into my frontal lobe. My eyes...honestly, they’d look pretty cute with how big and purple they were...too bad I seemed to be stuck with a look of sadness on my face. Below my neck was quite simply, the body of a purple pony, complete with a full coat of soft fur. I took a moment to unfurl my wings and spread them wide. They were large, almost majestic looking and I was curious as to how they worked. I pivoted my body to the side so I could get a look behind me. I caught a glimpse of my...my tail, swaying around my behind, having the same color scheme as my mane. That’s when my eyes fell upon the strangest feature I now possessed. Adorning both flanks was a pink starburst with white stars surrounding it. This mark was the most recent addition to my body and it was the one that filled me with both confusion and wonder. Even now, I’m not entirely sure what it is or what it represents. I continued to stare at my reflection for the longest time. I certainly didn’t hate it, but it was so alien seeing it in front of me. Before, I was just another person in the crowd. Now I’m a winged unicorn with a body so colorful, even I’m taken aback by it. I keep expecting someone to jump out and tell me this is all some practical joke, or that I’m just hallucinating this. But I know that’s not happening. This is my life now. I am a small, scared little pony. Before the First Day Tick, tock, tick, tock. Man, that clock is gonna make me go mad if I have to listen to it for one more damn minute. I muttered to myself. You never really understand how much you look at your phone or look at your laptop until you’re forced to sit out without any sort of stimulation for even a few minutes. I needed to do this however. The opportunity was too good to pass up. It’s a clinical trial for something that could potentially wipe out this disease we all had to hunker in for. Anything to not go insane from cabin fever or be stuck away from friends is a win in my book. The large wooden door of the appointment room swung open and I was greeted by a somewhat large man with an even larger smile. I guess I’m not the only one who wants to beat this infection. “Hello sir, I hope I didn’t keep you waiting too long” he grinned. “Oh, not too long at all!” I lied, wanting to stay on his good side. “I am pretty eager to go through this trial though. Anything to get rid of this infection, yeah?” The doctor sagely nods. “Don’t we all? Well, these clinical trials should be able to hit this problem straight in the head, if all goes to plan. Of course, with you being a part of the first group of people to try this cure, you’ll be rewarded handsomely for your participation.” I won’t lie, that was definitely part of the reason I was doing this; sweet sweet cash. I could no longer rely on my mom’s insurance so being able to get the cure for this stuff before anyone else and get paid for it rather than having to pay was killing two birds with one stone, or in this case, curing two diseases with one vaccine. “Well, just tell me what I need to do doc and I’ll get right on it!” I enthusiastically proclaim. “That’s the spirit!” the doctor claps and produces a clipboard with some paperwork. “We already have your medical records for this trial and you’ve been approved to be in the test group, all you need to do now is fill out all the paperwork and consent forms.” I nod and grab the clipboard from him and start looking over the paper. Ugh, look at all this legalese that they have here. I’ll just try and figure out what they want in short. I scan my eyes through all the documents.  Basically, I’ll need to be kept monitored for about three weeks where I’ll be observed and looked at for any abnormal behaviors or developments. I’m not gonna be allowed to communicate with the outside world “for security reasons” which probably means no internet. Woof. That’s a hard sell for me but I guess I won’t just be kept in a room for 3 weeks and I’ll have other things to do. I won’t be able to bring in anything into the testing area for fear of “tampering with sensitive data” alright sure. After going through the paper, I signed the blank lines making sure to dot my i’s and cross my t’s. After all was said and done, I handed the clipboard back to the doc. “Alright, it’s all done! Ha, I guess you guys own my soul or something on paper now, yeah?” I joked. “Ahahaha, no no, nothing like that” the doctor replied in earnest. “But now that is all taken care of, we’ll be administering an injection of the medication to you in a moment. Is there anything you need before we give it to you?” I shook my head. “I’m ready whenever doc!” The doctor nodded and called for his nurse, who came in wielding a container filled with what I can only describe as “science stuff” as well as an assortment of tools and equipment for performing an injection. As the nurse was going through the process, I turned to the doctor. “Hey doc, I’m just curious.” I say, with a more reserved and serious tone. “How...confident are you in this medical trial and in the medication itself?” The doctor turned to me and frowned slightly for a brief moment. “Well, there’s a lot of rigorous testing that’s done even before human trials begin, and quite frankly, there’s a lot of pressure to get this right so I’m confident that this will work” the doctor finished with a firm nod. “Alright, thanks doc.” I replied. I wasn’t entirely convinced, but his words did make me feel a bit less worried.  The nurse had finished her preparations and now had a syringe filled with the medication.  Just one shot and three weeks of prodding and this will all be over. I declared as the needle pierced my skin. “Now,” the doctor began “one thing you might experience as this medicine takes hold is a feeling of light-headedness. In fact it’s not uncommon for people to pass out when this serum takes hold.” “Wait, it might-” I started to complain but already I could feel my world spinning and rushing around me. I heard the nurse say something to the doctor but all the words were slurring together in a blended mess. I could feel the motion of being moved from the table to a wheelchair but my awareness was slipping. The last thing I remembered seeing was...purple? The First Day The first thing I noticed was that I was laying down on a very hard surface. Flat, cold, metallic. I groaned. This bed is the absolute worst. First chance I get, I’m leaving one star. How did I get here anyway? I remember going to the doctor’s for that clinical trial, I filled out a bunch of paperwork and got a shot, but after that… I tried to think more but my head was throbbing and my nose felt runny. Ugh, figures you develop mild symptoms before you get an actual cure. I opened my eyes, only to immediately close them again. The light in this room was uncomfortably bright. I cracked them open and looked over at the wall to help my eyes adjust quicker. The wall was stark grey and very smooth. The only thing I could tell was that it was a wall I didn’t recognize. Man, I know the doc said he was going to give me a dose of medicine and that it might cause me to faint, but that shit ended up knocking me flat on my ass harder than that night at last year’s convention. What a heck of a start. My eyes were finally not wincing from the abundantly bright lights so I shifted my body over on the other side to get a look at the whole room proper. Much like my “bed” the room itself was very spartan; the aforementioned lights and bed along with the featureless walls barring one “mirror” on the side where the only door to the room also stood as well as a panel of sorts near the door situated on the left wall. The door itself continued the boring streak this room had going for it with a gunmetal grey color scheme. The only notable difference was something resembling a mail slot at the bottom of the door. Off to the side was a basic sink and toilet that seemed to continue the “beige on boring” theme this room seemed to enjoy so much. Did I mention the room was boring? I think I did. Ah, right, I remember now. I mused, I read in the paperwork that I’d be kept in a facility for the duration of the trial. I guess they just dragged me here when the dose knocked me on my butt. That thing is a helluva drug. I slowly pulled myself up and nervously started twiddling my thumbs. This place was cold and uninviting. I had to get used to it though; I was going to be here for a while. Three weeks if I was remembering things correctly. I continue to sit there, sniffling my nose a bit, waiting for something to happen. Still sitting. My concept of time is completely skewed, I’m not even sure what time of day it is right now. I think to myself, dreading even one more minute of deafening silence. It’s like the damn doctor’s office with the clock all over again. My introspective thoughts are mercifully interrupted by the sound of static, quickly followed by a voice. “You’re awake” the voice declared. And the Captain Obvious award goes to that guy. I mentally countered. “H-hello? What’s going on here?” I responded. “Relax, you’re safe here” the voice said, trying to reassure me. “We’ve taken you into our facility for the trial. The injection you’ve received is very new and also...quite different from other medicines that are typically employed.” Oh that pause ain’t suspicious all all. I muttered in my head. “That’s why you were knocked out,” the voice continued. “However, we need to get testing done because we are all looking for a cure here, and we need to get it done fast. We are going to observe you and record what happens to you. If all goes well, we should be able to release you within 3 weeks.” Again, why do I not feel reassured by that statement? I pondered, annoyed that I still had very little information about where I was exactly and all the details regarding this trial. Many of the specific details in the contract were listed as “confidential information” which didn't sit well with me. “Well, if I’m staying here, I’d better get some better accommodations.” I quip as I knock on the hard metal surface I was left upon. “Of course, we’ll send you a set of bedding to make your stay more comfortable.” The voice conceded. “We’ll also be getting a meal prepared for you and we’ll be doing some medical tests on you. After that, you can be left in peace for the day. We’ll also offer up some recreation for you. I can imagine being isolated here with nothing to do could be upsetting. We’ll be letting you roam the facility freely starting on the third day, but until then, you should remain here.”  I frowned. I’m still going to be spending a lot of time here in this room. When they test for trials, they want to be extra cautious. I surmised. Well, it could be worse I guess. My ears perk up as I hear someone approaching the door. It’s only now that I realize that I’m only clad in my boxer shorts and nothing else. I get slightly embarrassed as the door opens. A man clad in a typical white doctor’s jacket comes into the room. He was carrying something which looked like a doctor’s bag, probably because it was. Only the smartest observations from me.. “Good afternoon, sir. I’ll be giving you an examination. If you would please sit on the table, we can get started” he plainly stated. This guy seemed like a stick in the mud, but the quicker I do this the sooner I’ll be able to have some peace and quiet today. I simply nod and go over to the table. I move over and sit down. The doctor looks me over and starts giving me a long series of tests; checking my reflexes, observing my heart rate, asking me to cough and so forth. After every test he writes down a little something in his folder and moves onto the next test. He then tells me that he’ll be shining a light in my eyes to test dilation. I nod to him, just wanting to get this over with. He shines the light in my right eye followed by my left. After that test, the normally stoic doctor seems much more excited.  “Fascinating” he mutters to himself, barely audible to me. He then starts to frantically write in his folder. Unlike with the previous tests, the amount he was writing felt like he was writing a novel instead of a normal medical file. I start to get worried. What was so interesting about my eyes? The tests continued as normal but I couldn’t get his reaction to my eyes out of my mind. Eventually, the doctor stood up and gave a small sigh. “Well sir, you’re all checked out. I’ll be running this data back to our analysts. We’ll continue to monitor the situation and we’ll keep you apprised of details should the needs arise. Have a good day.” He nodded before exiting and then I was once again alone. I wasted no time in moving over to the “mirror” in my room and stared deeply in my reflection, trying to see what was so interesting about them. It did not take me long to figure out why. My right eye looked exactly as I remembered it looking, a boring, run of the mill shade of brown with nothing to write home about. It was my left eye that was so unusual. My jaw hung low and my stare became unwavering. I was mentally trying to tell myself that it wasn’t real and that I was imagining things but there was no denying it. My left eye is purple. My body was very still, unwilling to move, while my mind raced so fast it could outrun the cops. How is that possible? You don’t have eye color changes from a flu vaccine! I don’t wear contacts either, so it can’t be that. Did someone surgically alter my eye? No, there would be surgical scars and I’m pretty sure human eyes don’t come in purple! What’s- My mental drag race was interrupted by a buzzer sound followed by the sound of metal scraping up against something. I whirl my head to my left to see the panel and the door’s mail slot open up. The former pushes out a featureless box while the latter pushes through a tray of food and water. Upon seeing the food, my stomach growled. I gave a heavy sigh, putting the eye thing in the back of my mind. It was still a concern, but not exactly something I could deal with at the moment. The most pressing matter at the moment is getting myself fed. The food was a bit bland, just a ham sandwich, a salad and a chocolate chip cookie. However, given that I hadn’t eaten in a while, I didn’t care too much. The salad and the cookie seemed to taste alright and were nothing to write home about, but there was something off about the ham sandwich. I couldn’t put my finger on it. It didn’t taste like it was rancid or something like that but for some reason it simply didn’t taste like ham should for some reason. I decided to file that under, “Odd, but not Purple Eye Odd” in my mind and decided to take a look in the box that was also deposited in my room. I opened it up to find several items inside; a tablet, several books, a sketchbook with some pencils and finally a note at the bottom saying “Please put the food tray in the box and return it to the wall panel”. Well, at least I won’t be bored. I pulled the items out and set them to the side before placing my used tray inside. The panel unceremoniously closed a few seconds later and I was now alone with my items. I turned on the tablet and saw several different apps and games on there, but it seems mostly useless as it was not connected to the wi-fi and there didn’t seem to be any routers to connect to in this damn place.  So I have a dedicated Bejeweled machine, fantastic. I sarcastically bellowed out in my head.  I suppose it could be worse, there are at least a few apps loaded on here that didn’t require the internet. I put it off to one side and look at the sketchpad. There were plenty of blank pages in here for sketching which would be awesome, but sketching with no references would be a bitch. Still, having it is better than not having any entertainment. I finally looked at the books that came in the box.  Given my luck, they’re all textbooks for college courses I never took in school. I pessimistically predicted. My fears were mostly unfounded however. There was only one academic book amongst the three I recieved. The book in question was called “History of Horses in North America” Wow, what a page turner this thing is. I grumble, my sarcasm meter going into overdrive. I should give it a read. “Eh?” I blurt out loud to no one in particular. Did...did someone say something? My sarcasm meter had now dropped to zero. Maybe this quiet room is playing tricks on me. Regardless, I judged the book by its cover which I know is a cardinal sin. I decided to thumb through it to pass the time. Hopefully, this will pass me by and I can go home soon. I mused in mind as I read the day away before falling asleep.