Liam, a typical office drone, was on the cusp of hurling his resignation at his boss’s face when the fabric of reality decided to take a coffee break. One moment he was in his cubicle, the next, he was in what appeared to be a circus tent designed by someone high on baroque aesthetics. He was encircled by a trio of outlandishly dressed figures—a pair of men and a woman—whose outfits screamed 'Mardi Gras meets the Renaissance fair'.
Around him, bodies lay strewn like rag dolls. Uniquely, Liam was upright, a fact that seemed to interest the garishly clad trio momentarily. In a grand gesture of greeting, Liam waved, and promptly, his stomach betrayed him, expelling the remnants of his half-eaten tuna sandwich in a spectacular fashion. The trio wrinkled their noses in unison, their expressions a blend of disgust and snobbery. One of the men, in a feathered cap that would make any peacock jealous, gave the other a hearty slap on the back—a gesture that, in any other circumstance, would signify a job well done. But Liam? He was just confused and nauseous.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
“Where the fuck am I?” Liam pondered, his mind a swirl of questions. He hadn't the foggiest idea whether he was hallucinating from work stress or if this was some new VR team-building exercise gone awry.
His thought train was derailed when a gaggle of grubby-faced children barged in, their small hands eager and prying, nudging the inert bodies with a mix of curiosity and a disturbing familiarity. One of them, a boy with a face that looked like it had a long-standing relationship with dirt, took Liam’s hand with an assertiveness that belied his years and tugged him out of the room.
Through a labyrinth of hallways, adorned with tapestries that had seen better days, they went, until they arrived at a humble room, no larger than Liam's own office. There were three beds, each looking as comfortable as a pile of leaves.
"Pick a bed, any bed," the boy seemed to say with his eyes, as he gestured grandly towards the meager sleeping arrangements. Leom sat down on a bed and the boy left him there. Realizing he was very tired and this was probably a dream, he laid down his head and fell asleep.