What’s going...it’s dark...who’s....
I thrust my eyes open, only to quickly close them due to the bright, clinical lighting.
Ah, back to this crap again. I bit my tongue, remembering that this would be a long term situation. I pulled myself up off the “bed” which still felt uncomfortable even after getting the bed padding from that wall panel. I rubbed my temples, trying to subdue a headache I was just now noticing. In fact, I had aches all over. I knew I was sick but damn, this was a slog.
And it begins. The constant trials of the eye changing flu. What kinds of nightmares are in store? What terrors will befall our hero? I bellow out in my mind like it’s the closing card of an Anime. I tend to think that snark is the best medicine.
After throwing up the “epic cliffhanger” in my mind, the buzzing of the intercom came up again.
“Ah, you’re awake. Good Morning” the voice declared. Whoever it was seemed to be attempting a comforting tone, but they were unable to overcome the terrible, unfortunate, horrific curse of sounding incredibly bored. I wasn’t sure if it was the same guy from before, but given that this place seemed to be full of “by the books” doctors with the bedside manner of a Subway worker on their lunch break; barely concealed apathy.
“Hey there, quick question. Could you, uh...talk to me face to face instead of just buzzing me over the intercom all the time? It’s really bugging me that this is being done with me being isolated all the time.”
There was a long pause. I tapped my foot in anticipation. It’s not that big of an ask, is it? Just a little more of a personal connection. I have entertainment in here, yes, but I need to be social or I’m gonna go crazy. After a bit of waiting, the “mirror” lit up, showing two people behind there, one looking like a typical doctor and another well dressed individual in a business suit. The doctor seemed to have a neutral expression while the man in the suit seemed not all that pleased to be there. The doc leaned down and pressed a button.
“Is this alright with you?” the doctor asked. His voice was different than the one that talked before.
Huh, that's odd. I thought to myself. The doctor wasn't the one talking before...hmmm. I briefly pondered what that could mean before replying to my hosts.
“Yeah, that’s a lot better, thank you.” I sighed. I knew this situation was gonna make me desperate for social interaction. Sure, I tend to be a bit introverted but that doesn’t mean I want to cut off all social interaction. I figured this might do something to help, even if they were mainly only interested in my medical condition.
“Well then, if that’s all settled, let’s get down to business, shall we?” the doctor responded, sounding less clinically distant than the doctor from yesterday. “We want to get a read on how you’re doing today compared to yesterday. Now, from what we can see, you are still affected by Heterochromia at this time...”
Ah yeah, the purple eye that shouldn’t be purple. Man, what a weird color.
Purple isn’t a weird eye color…
Eh? Did...did I hear something? I mused in my mind. God, don’t tell me being in this box is making me hear sounds now.
“...but we need to check on you to see if you have received any other physical changes. So just tell me how you’re feeling at the moment” the doctor finished.
Ah crap, I missed like half of that. I cursed in my head. Well, I guess I should just tell the good doctor about what’s happening.
“Well doc, I’m aching all over. I feel like crap,” I bluntly quip back.
“That’s understandable and I’m sympathetic to your situation, however, I must insist that you be very specific with your descriptions” the doctor insisted.
“Alright,” I relented and gave careful thought at where the pain was located. The headache was already painfully clear to me right now, but focusing on the specifics made me realize it was localized to one point in my head right in the center. My focus was then drawn to my hands and feet. They seemed to ache a bit more than the rest of my body and while it wasn’t debilitating at the moment, the fingers and toes seemed harder to move, like moving metallic joints that have only just started to rust.
“Well,” I began. “I’ve got a headache but it’s only a specific point on my forehead that hurts right about here,” I explain, pointing to the area in question. “I’ve also got aches in my hands and feet. I’m not sure why, but my fingers and toes feel harder to move than normal” I finished, awaiting the doctor’s reply.
The doctor mulled over my words, writing down what he had heard on a clipboard. I could see him nod sagely a couple times before returning to the microphone.
“Alright, we’ll be performing more tests then. This will include getting a blood sample and hair sample.” I subconsciously scratched my scalp at the mention of a hair sample.
Maybe that’ll change color and I’ll have neon pink hair, that’d be a riot! I amused myself with the hypothetical scenario. Always nice to get a double dose of snark in, just in case.
“Okay, thanks for the heads up,” I plainly replied. I’m still not keen on all these doctors coming up to me and doing all this testing but if I’ve got something, I should get it looked at and not spread it around, even if I had to do it in this boring place.
My thoughts shifted when I heard the sound of the door opening and in walked the doctor from the other side of the two-way mirror. He nodded cordially and gave me a warm smile. He was dressed similarly to the doctor from yesterday and was carrying a similar bag as well, only this one was bigger, presumably to carry more sophisticated equipment. But the difference in demeanor between him and the last doctor was absolutely night and day.
“Hello there, Mr. F-” the doctor began.
“Ah,” I held up my hand to interrupt him, “Actually, you can just call me Penn. It’s my preferred nickname.” I don’t exactly hate my legal name, it’s just that I’m so used to being referred to by my nickname that it’s just a habit at this point.
“Well alright then, Penn! I’m Doctor Matt Eckert and I’ll be looking after you for next few weeks,” he stated. “I know you might be a little worried about what’s going on and how this is affecting you, yes?” he inquired.
I tended to be a pretty laid back kind of guy. I will admit this is a bit unusual and the eye thing was a bit weird at first but I can deal with that. Heck, having a purple eye could be pretty fun. Maybe I could get a contact in one eye to match it. Still, I should be wary of what’s happening to myself.
“I’ll admit doc, this is not something I normally deal with when I have the flu, but I’m not too worried about it. I’m pretty young and healthy, I can endure this!” I spoke confidently.
“Ah, I see,” Dr. Eckert mused to himself, writing down notes on his clipboard. “And if I remember correctly, you also mentioned a headache in a specific area on your forehead as well as aching in your hands and feet,” he continued. “May I examine you?”
“Oh uh, sure of course,” I stammer a bit. This guy was pretty personable. Yep, very different from the last guy I got.
Dr. Eckert moves over to examine the areas in question, putting a warm hand to my forehead and puts his thumb smack dab in the center of my forehead. “Is this where it hurts?”
I wince. Yup. That’s where it’s at.
“Nnngh, yeah!” I found it pretty bizarre that a headache would be so concentrated, I’ve never had a headache like that before.
“Hmm, how strange...well let me examine your hands next, Penn,” he continued.
I put out my hands with my palms out. He whipped out a handheld light and started moving it over my hands, examining the veins thoroughly. With a sufficient amount of Hmms, Ahhs, and a sprinkling of the phrase, “I see” he started to move my fingers apart. It didn’t hurt like my head but it was odd, I felt like I had flexed my fingers a million times like I was exercising them and they had an intense soreness to them.
“How do they feel?” the doctor inquires.
“It’s like they’ve bench pressed for 8 hours straight.”
The doctor gave a hardy laugh. “Well, if they’re feeling that sore, maybe your hands should pull back on the reps a bit!” the doctor jokes. He then motions to the bed. “Alright, let’s see what’s going on with your feet now.”
I nod and hop up on the bed. The doctor leans down and does a similar sweep of my feet. As the doctor does his doctor thing, I start to think about my symptoms. Soreness is a pretty common one to deal with but the soreness I was feeling very specific and very localized. This whole situation was like gas station sushi: Very questionable and no one should ever have to experience it.
‘Well,” the doctor sighs, lifting himself back up. “Aside from the aforementioned problems, you seem to be in good physical health. I know this whole process seems to be moving at a snail’s pace in your mind,” the doctor said with a sympathetic glance.
“Well, you’re already doing a better job than the doctor I had yesterday. That guy was so...clinical” I groaned, not really having a better word to describe him.
“Ah yes, you must be talking about Doctor Phil Tanner...no relation tothat Doctor Phil” Doctor Eckert said with a knowing nod. “He’s got a pretty stale personality and a bedside manner to match. He only shows any real lively excitement when he’s dealing with something he’s never seen before.”
I looked down at the ground, lost in thought.Yeah, he was so stiff until he saw my eye, then suddenly he lit up like a Christmas Tree. Ech, I hope my interactions with him are limited.
My thoughts are stopped abruptly by Doctor Matt clasping his hands together.
“Well, all that leaves now is getting the blood and hair samples!” he said in a bit too cheery a voice.
I groaned. Crap, I almost forgot about that.
Doctor Matt nodded, “Yeah, I know, it sucks but we need to do it” he dictates, opening up his doctor’s bag. He pulled out a lot of equipment including the professional tubey tubes, the fancy ziplock bags, the band-aids without the Hulk on them, among other fancy items I vaguely knew about. Maybe. Probably.
Those are NOT the names of those items and I know it.
I shook my head. I can’t be getting lightheaded now, he hasn’t even started yet!
After assembling his setup, he turned towards me. “Alright, I’m going to draw out some blood now.” I nod and simply look forward so I don’t have to see the deed be done. I don’t hate needles, but the idea of seeing my blood being drawn out made me feel a bit queasy so I figured the best strategy was to just look away and not see it. As the blood left my body, I felt a bit lightheaded.
Hooooo boy, thaaaat’s the room getting dizzy. My body gets very light and distant as Doctor Matt finishes up. I can barely hear him as he tells me he’s going to cut a snippet of my hair. I vaguely nod at him and he does the deed.
“Alright, you’re all done for today...and not a moment too soon, you look pretty out of it” Doctor Matt smirks.
Oh, he’s had this happen before. I surmise. I attempt to roll my eyes at him, but I instead just move my entire head like I’m a bobblehead.
“Suuuuuuuure, doc,” I manage to slur out. “Thaaaaaanksh for your hospitality.” I raised my hand to wave at him, but it ended up looking more like my arm just ragdolled.
Doctor Matt gave a lighthearted laugh. “Alright, I’ll let you rest.”
As soon as the door was closed, I placed my head against the pillow. And just like that, I was out like a light.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Twilight awoke in her bed. The alicorn glanced over at her calendar. Today was the day! She gave a big smile and practically leapt out of bed.
“Ah, I’m ready to seize the day! There are books to read and lists to write!” she gleefully chanted. She was about to go into the city and meet up with her old city friends: Moondancer, Lyra Heartstrings, Lemon Hearts, Minuette, and Twinkleshine. Her excitement was almost palpable. She quickly grabbed her bags, having already packed all the essentials the night before. But one thing needed to be done before she could leave: Breakfast!
She popped into the kitchen and decided that she’d go light for her meal. She figured that her friends would want to go somewhere great for lunch and decided she didn’t want to fill up too much. Lyra was definitely a big eater and would want to go some place with massive portion sizes. She made herself two pieces of toast and a tall glass of Orange Juice. She downs the meal quickly and cleans up her dishes.
“Ahhh, that really hit the spot!” she exclaimed. “Alright, time to lock up the place and head out.” She grabbed the key and opened the door. She looked out at her hometown.
She saw cars driving down the street, fillies and colts playing street hockey (though mostly in driveways thanks to the aforementioned cars), a swim meet at the local pool and the mail mare with a grey coat and blonde mane who seemed to have a lot of Amazon packages in her carriage. It was just a typical Saturday morning in northern New Jersey. Twilight breathed in a breath of fresh air.
“Wow, it’s such a beautiful day today. Feels like Spring is coming early this year!” Twilight observed. She then chuckled. “Guess Rainbow Dash must be really happy to have such clear skies today. She’s been chatting about it for weeks now.” Twilight pulled out her phone and entered her coordinates into Google Maps. She could just call an Uber Pony to take her to New York City but she felt she needed to really use her wings for a bit. She flew over her neighborhood and into the sky beyond.
She didn’t know exactly what would be in store for her when she got there, but if it was Lyra’s idea, it probably was pretty out there. She had some crazy ideas for sure. As if by magic, her phone started to ring and, sure enough, it was Lyra! She smirked and picked up the phone.
“Hello, this is Twilight Sparkle!” she hummed into the receiver.
Lyra replied, “Hey Penn, you should probably wake up now.”
“Huh?”
My eyes shoot open.