Maximilian tried to open his eyes, but all he was greeted with were blurry figures and muffled voices. A thick slime seemed to surround his whole body, and a mask on his face was giving him a continuous supply of oxygen. The whole situation reminded him of a time he would rather forget, and he started to panic. Reaching forward his hand pressed against cold glass. The voices were getting clearer, but he could only make out bits and pieces.

“Max don’t worry… doctor said you’ll… just a moment…” The voice was familiar, masculine. It reminded him of his fath-wait, that's exactly who it was. The memories flooded back to him. He was in a pod at the Altera Corporations facility. The man outside was his father. He was back on Earth.

He was able to calm down after the realization of his situation. He pulled the hand back and just floated in the goop surrounding him, his breathing calm. After what seemed like hours but was more than likely just a few minutes the pod opened up. The slime flowed out and he went with it. The world became extremely bright and loud, blinding and deafening him for a short time.

He felt someone holding him up, keeping him from falling to the ground. When his vision cleared he saw his father there. The light bouncing off his glasses. Max's eyes became a little teary, as the realization finally sunk in. He really was home.

“Don’t worry Max, I’ve got you.” His father’s soothing voice calmed him down even more. His thoughts no longer jumbled, Max quickly stood up.

“Uh, thanks Dad.” He flinched at the sound of his own voice. It wasn’t the normal steady baritone he had grown accustomed to, but more that of a sixteen year old kid. ‘I forgot this is what I sounded like before…’

Looking around he saw similar situations all around the facility. It was huge, with probably a few thousand pods ordered in neat rows. And in front of each of them were people in what looked like bodysuits. He assumed that was what he had on too and a quick look confirmed it.

“That must have been quite the gaming session huh Max?” His head whipped back at the sound of his father. ‘Quite the gaming session?’ He then remembered that only the participants were told how much time would seem to pass to them. His father probably thought it was only for a day.

“Y-yeah Dad, you could say that…” He wasn’t sure if he was allowed to tell him anything, so he decided to wait for a while. “So what happened while I was in the pod?”

“Not much really, they offered us beds to sleep on for the night, and the techs brought us food.” His father explained to Max, and proceeded to explain in high detail about how the food they were given was generic and bland. This made Max smile, his Dad had always been a bit of a foodie, though he never could learn to cook decently. It was always up to him to prepare dinners. Not like he minded, he always did enjoy the kitchen.

“They also mentioned that there would be an announcement in the hall, and some clean clothes on the way. Come on let’s go.” Max followed his Dad through the crowds of families. Soon they found themselves in a series of dressing rooms. An Altera employee came up and took some measurements, then came back with some fresh clothes. They were led to one of the rooms where Max got dressed. The clothes were pretty generic, a red t-shirt and some jeans. Warm socks and shoes were given also.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

When they were done there they went to a massive auditorius with stadium style seats. They found a place to sit about halfway up, and they chatted about random things while waiting for everyone to arrive. When people stopped entering a man came down to the ground with an Altera uniform on. He spoke into a microphone in his hand.

“Ahem, is this thing on? Okay good. Welcome back all you travelers, that’s what we at the Altera Corporation like to call our testers. Now, I know what you’re thinking, ‘Is this man going to tell us stuff we already know?’ and the answer is yes! Not for your sake but for the sake of your families who don’t really know what you went through.”

Max could feel a wave of confusion coming from the families of the ‘travelers’ as they’re called, his Dad included. He would probably be more curious about what their reaction would be if he wasn’t so nervous.

“You see everyone, there’s something that the higher ups wanted to keep secret until now. And that is the amount of time your family members spent in Altera. While many of you probably think is that the travelers experienced a day, maybe a week in the pod. But in reality they spent lifetime. In fact, I think the shortest amount of time was… two hundred years.”

The audience was in uproar at this point, and that included his father, who was looking at him with wide eyes. Max had experienced a lot of things, but something about the way his Dad looked at him made him shrink back.

“Max, did he just say two hundred years, at least…?” The words struck him harder than an angry dragon, and he shrunk further. What kind of answer could he give to a question like that? ‘Yeah Dad, surprise I’m older than your grandpa!’ Something tells him that wouldn’t go over well. Luckily he was saved from answering because the man continued after the crowd quieted down a bit.

“Yes, well that was the reaction I kind of expected here. But as I was saying, yes, your family members are now older than you are. And Altera Corp thankfully thought of a solution for the obvious problem of reintegration into society.” A large screen came down from the ceiling, showing video of multiple giant cities.

“I would like to introduce you to that solution, these are cities built specifically with travelers in mind. It is designed to house every traveler and their family within its borders. There’s everything a city needs, top notch schools for all ages, hospitals filled with the finest tech, and the best gosh darn sewer system you’ve ever seen! And the best part, we will help you move in absolutely free!” Max was sure everyone here was thinking the exact same thing as him. ‘How did you build this without anyone knowing?’

“Of course, you aren’t being forced to move here. You are free to stay right where you are. But I would like to ask you, do you really want your family member trying to go back into a technological world, where they don’t know anyone like them, after two hundred plus years in a fantasy one? Again the choice is yours, and the offer will last for a month. I hope you all consider it.” With that the man walked out of sight.

Max just sat there, staring a the screen showing the cities, when his father’s voice took him from his thoughts.

“Well, I think we have a lot to talk about. But first, I think we should head home. Come on.” Max only nodded, following him outside to the car. The car ride home was silent.