Wit jumped out of the tree hollow landing in a crouch with a smile spread across his face, the day he’s been waiting for, his tenth birthday.
The day he finally casts off his human moniker to become something entirely new. Wit couldn’t help but shake in anticipation, he rushed towards the touch panel clicking the lavatory icon.
Like the night before, Wit watched as his tree house collapsed into black sand pixels before shifting and undulating into an alcove on the side of a mountain; a steamy waterfall began to sputter into existence, the pixels connecting to the pipes no doubt.
The floor flooded until there was a tiny river with a path of rocks leading to the small alcove with a stand-up mirror next to a closet.
He quickly took off his vital suit, the color changing from his preferred black to the default white The suit was splattered with all sorts of odd stickers Wit made himself.
The lavatory setting was the only time that he was allowed to enjoy the experience of being fully in the nude; As the guides needed to have a live feed of their vitals at all times and even then, they only had fifteen minutes to enjoy being in their birthday suit.
Those cold-hearted droids will never understand what it feels like to take a nice long soak in some hot water. It’ll probably fry their insides, and if they can't enjoy it no one can huh? Those selfish bunch of ones and zeroes. Wit thought sourly as he stored his suit in the closet for decontamination.
Passing the mirror he stopped and looked into his green eyes with flakes of amber around the iris. “Those are old thoughts, Wit. After today no more rules! Or better yet, you make the rules.” He declared pointing at his naked reflection.
Wit took a step back to get a good look at himself, really looking at who he was right now in this moment before his imminent rebirth.
His skin was like cream with a bit of cocoa mixed in; his hair was a mess of black loose curls. His hand subconsciously rose to his face which he just noticed was very symmetrical, he felt his straight nose bridge and traced his thick eyebrows, he rubbed his jaw and tapped his chin.
He smiled showing off a perfect set of teeth and ten-year-old enthusiasm. His smile faded into a frown and he noted how his face looked going from happy to sad in the mirror, he felt the weight of what was to come begin to settle in somewhat. He made silly faces to make himself feel better while he danced in place and laughed with his reflection.
Wit eventually stopped, and for a long moment, he stood there taking it all in while just staring at his now ten-year-old self feeling conflicted. A tension in his chest built and before he knew it he was screaming until the veins on his neck were showing. He jumped up and down throwing his arms in a full-on temper tantrum, being so angry but having no true outlet.
Something in him rebelled against what was to come, a part of him was scared, and a fraction of him said he was perfect the way he was.
He choked up a sob while holding his shivering body before he took a deep breath trying to recenter himself. He was going to miss this version of himself, the person he was born to be; a human. But his kind was no longer welcome on Earth, so he must adapt.
“Adapt, to make something suitable for a new use or purpose,” Wit whispered looking down at his toes that he curled up.
“Purpose, the reason for which something is done or the reason something exists.” He said a little louder, unclenching his shoulders.
“Exist, to be a part of reality…what do you exist for, Witan?” He asked himself while looking into his mirror-reflected green-amber eyes.
“To make the impossible possible, to make a zero into a one, to bend existence to see if it’ll break or adapt.” He grinned, feeling balanced once more in his place in the universe. Shaking off his nerves, Wit quickly ducked under the warm waterfall to prepare for what should be the best day of his life.
⚡️
Wit followed a Guide into the elevator and nervously watched as it selected the first floor. The floor of no return or new beginnings as some of the other kids liked to call it.
He was alone as expected, him being the only one to turn ten today, he felt a pang of sadness thinking about the other tower-born kids he was leaving behind, but he said his goodbyes yesterday and hopefully, he’ll see them on the other side after their eventual rebirths.
Traveling down only two floors seemed to somehow take longer than usual, Wit couldn’t tell if that was because he was anxious or if these floors were somewhat larger than the rest. He shifted on his tiptoes repeatedly as he waited for the elevator to reach the first floor, not bothering to ask the Guide any questions, knowing the answers were just a floor away.
The guide was the one to eventually break the silence, glowing a warm orange like the setting sun.“It was a pleasure guiding your way young Witan. You, your stickers, and your endless questions will be sorely missed. If you didn’t catch on, that was an attempt at sarcasm to lighten the mood. We Guides hope you have a successful rebirth and as we may never see one another again. Take this last bit of guidance, choose for yourself.”
The elevator silently opened and Wit was ushered out. Before he could ask any clarifying questions to the Guide about this choice; the elevator door closed.
The stingy droid timed it perfectly. He thought with respect and a hint of longing knowing this would be the last they’ll see of each other. He looked forward and saw a corridor that led to a large circular door at the end.
The corridor was filled with warm-colored lights and relaxing music that softly echoed throughout the chamber leading toward the door. Wit took quick steps through the long hallway feeling his heart beat faster with each step as he approached, by the time he was in front of the door he was also feeling somewhat lightheaded.
He took a few deep breaths letting the calm corridor do its job while examining the beautifully crafted crystal-inlaid metal door.
Wit traced his fingers over the emerald vegetation, the citrine animal wildlife, and the amethyst insects that made up the beautiful ecosystem of crystals on the silver-white round metal door. The quality and detail of the art was inspiring, the three different crystal types making up the door all seemed to interact with one another creating a cohesive coexistence.
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A balancing act that requires each party to play their part.
After his heart settled into a steady rhythm he put his right hand directly in the golden handprint indentation in the middle of the door. All the crystals began to emit a soft light glowing in their individual colors and the golden print became warm to the touch.
The doors hissed open like a camera shutter, leaving the golden hand print in the center of a revealed blood-red obelisk now standing in the middle of the entrance. On the other side was a bridge that led to a platform in the middle of a vast chamber, at the moment all was dark but the lit pathway to the center of the room.
Wit pulled out a sticker he prepared for this exact moment, a badly illustrated skull with a vine peaking out a crack in the cranium with DeadEnd written at the bottom, it was promptly slapped on the back of the obelisk. So whoever looked over their shoulders one last time would know there was no going back.
Taking his first step on the bridge saw the door hiss shut, closing that chapter of Wit's life completely. Each step had the lights behind him dim to darkness making the bridge look like it was floating in midair. Eventually, he stood on the lone platform in the middle of nothing and the bridge disappeared in the dark with the last of the lights.
He waited for something to happen and when nothing did he couldn’t help but say.
“Hello?”
The room burst into light and noise with dozens of screens depicting scenes of Wit throughout his years in Babel.
Playing with the other kids, working on his personal projects, talking to the Guides, and everything in between. Wit felt his heart swell when it showed him at eight years old saying bye to his best friend Zar who went through his rebirth years ago. He spun around taking in all the footage that surrounded him, feeling a chill run down his spine as all his personal moments became not so personal anymore.
The screens blinked off one at a time in what Wit realized was in chronological order, leaving one last square of his most recent action, putting his hand in the golden hand scanner. That scene was repeated multiple times while getting bigger and bigger. The screen then went blank and became a three-dimensional cube filled with smaller boxes.
Craning his neck to look at the towering cube, Wit stood in awe at the sight of code and geometric shapes constantly changing within the smaller cubes that shifted and took different places within the larger cube construct.
“Salutations young Witan, I am Rubix the A.I in charge of maintaining Babel and the Guides that call it home. As you’ve seen I've not only been gathering data from your vita-suits for live biological analysis, but I also have multiple entries of visual and audio footage. The reason behind all this data gathering is to compile an in-depth analysis of your entire being. Brainwaves, sleep cycles, hormone levels, IQ, your fears, hopes, and dreams; everything needed to understand who you are. I do apologize for not informing you prior, but that would have skewed our eventual results if you knew you were being watched to this degree.”
Wit just stared, mesmerized by Rubix’s cube of constant rearrangement and spellbound by the math formula involved. Hearing the explanation helped him shake off the uneasy feeling of having his whole life flash before his eyes, he shook his head focusing on what Rubix had to say. Shifting on his tiptoes as he waited.
“Now onto the reason behind all this data mining. You young Witan are now faced with an irreversible choice that will determine your very future. With this information, it is my hope that I'm able to point you in the right direction of your rebirth.”
The mention of his rebirth had Wits’ heart fluttering. Clenching his fists This is it, this is what I was born for.
“There are three different evolutionary paths that will take you away from being your current homosapien. Using the motif on the door as an example, each of the forms of coexistence is what we are attempting to replicate in this process of transfiguration.”
“You have the Druids, the embodiment of the Plantae. This option will make you one with nature.
A mirror image of Wit formed in front of him, before morphing into him but vastly different. This version of him was naked, his skin was more of a light pastel green with faint leafy veins branching throughout his body in fascinating shapes. He also had brown wooden tree bark that wrapped around his neck, wrist, and ankles.
The bark around his neck crawled up his jaw covering just below his mouth, while also going down his spine seemingly for protection. The druid version of himself had eyes as vibrant as emeralds filled with mischief, life, and wisdom that peeked through a leafy canopy of hair.
“Then you have the Pacti, the keepers of the Animalia. This option will make you kin to all animals.”
Another him formed to the right of the druid, this naked replica was somewhat taller due to the digitigrade feet and legs. A coat of black fur and sinewy muscle replaced his skin, leaving it bare on his abdomen and his face; keeping it the same light brown. His ears elongated and widened, moving to the top of his head, and getting tangled in the wild curls of his hair, twitching as a cats would.
His face seemed predatory, sharp, and dangerous, the pacti version of himself smiled wide with a mouth full of canines. The eyes became lively slitted citrine discs, and a long powerful tail swished back and forth playfully behind the copy.
“Lastly you have the Spectors, the agents of the Arthropoda. This option will turn you into a spawn of the insects.”
The last of the copies came into existence to the left of the Druid, this one was skinnier than the other two races. It looked similar to the druid but instead of bark, it had black chitin around its neck, wrist, and ankles. It also had alabaster skin which made it look like a living statue.
A large chitin covered segmented tail that reminded Wit of centipedes connected to the back of the Spectors head giving it a very long-headed alien appearance as the tail waved lazily through the air. The chitin framed the side of his head and face, seemingly deleting the ears and giving the large timeless amethyst eyes prominence.
Wit looked from each of his copies, noting the differences and seeming advantages each carried. The Druid could grow bark and leafy hair and the skin became a type of cellulose material, making Wit think they survived off of photosynthesis like actual plants.
The Pacti seemed the most straightforward, gaining the traits of an animal would be highly beneficial in many situations, such as hunting and tracking.
While the Spector seemed like an enigma to him, with their small frame and weird attachment to the back of its head but seemingly high defense with their carapace armor, he wasn’t sure from a glance what their real advantages would be.
“You may feel overwhelmed with these choices in front of you, that is why I have gathered data concerning your persona to help you decide on this life-altering decision. Using all the data from your psychology charts, your sandbox preferences, biological scans, etc.. I have determined that the Druid would be the optimal choice for you and your future young Witan.”
Wit could understand how the A.I came to that conclusion, the Druid spoke to him on many levels. Becoming one with nature, seemingly the most resourceful of the three, and the general aesthetic felt right to Wit. But something inside him said it wasn’t enough. “May I ask a few questions, Grand Rubix?”
“Of course you may, I want you to feel confident in your decision and regret nothing,” Rubix replied
Pacing between the three races Wit spoke. “Using your words, you stated that the entry door was a motif to illustrate the choices we have available here. Emerald for the Druids that exist in nature, citrine for the Pacti in the animal kingdom, and amethyst for the Spectors and their creepy crawlies.”
He paused and with a twinkle in his eye he stated his inquiry “My first question, what is the name of the metal holding all three in place?”