You felt it -- all of you. It wasn't the feeling of a pull, or the force of a push, or anything you can describe, but you know you felt it. You felt those eyes, bright as suns, burn off your current form and seal over a different one. The eyes were smiling, even if you could not see his face you could tell. Galileo's name was not secret the minute you felt his curious stare, the name ringing through your head behind an annoying chuckle of victory to a game that had not yet started while existence itself seemed to halt.
The eyes,
The name,
The laugh,
Then, the speech:
"Greetings, player. Pawn. Token. Piece..." The words were mocking, but somehow they conveyed respect. The voice was more than disembodied, and somehow utterly devoid of accents or tone, as if your own thoughts were speaking to you. "You're... 'invited' to take a gamer's seat by the board I've created. I say 'invited' because, whether you know it or not, you've all accepted what there was a chance to decline and for that will be rewarded access to something the likes of which you've never seen. Explaining the situation any further, however, is against the rules and will ruin all the fun...." At this point, somehow, the voice smiled. "...and no one appreciates fun like Galileo." The name struck again, dropping itself into a part of your mind that seemed unable to forget it, even if you wanted to. The speech began to ramp up, as if these thoughts of yours could no longer contain their excitement. "I am the painter of a certain end, but more so the painter of a sure beginning. So, to enjoy my art and to experience an end, we must... begin."
"The short speech came to an end,
Your breached mind came to a bend,
The great Galileo reaps what he's sown,
Your existence is property, and now it is owned."
Life ceased as you had your existence seized... The eyes could still be felt, but could not be reacted to or properly located. The feeling was becoming even less describable as every aspect of yourself and everything you know was twisted into position. Every sense voided, including that of time, and yet you remained conscious. Weight applied in all directions, skin burned at all points, yet no pressure or pain. Time moved at accelerated speeds, but not a moment passed. The foreground of your life was pulled away and replaced with a new one. Just in the moment that your actions suddenly had consequence again, your mind began to speak a second time, this time as if there were multiple listeners...
The eyes,
The name,
The laugh,
Then, the speech:
"Greetings, player. Pawn. Token. Piece..." The words were mocking, but somehow they conveyed respect. The voice was more than disembodied, and somehow utterly devoid of accents or tone, as if your own thoughts were speaking to you. "You're... 'invited' to take a gamer's seat by the board I've created. I say 'invited' because, whether you know it or not, you've all accepted what there was a chance to decline and for that will be rewarded access to something the likes of which you've never seen. Explaining the situation any further, however, is against the rules and will ruin all the fun...." At this point, somehow, the voice smiled. "...and no one appreciates fun like Galileo." The name struck again, dropping itself into a part of your mind that seemed unable to forget it, even if you wanted to. The speech began to ramp up, as if these thoughts of yours could no longer contain their excitement. "I am the painter of a certain end, but more so the painter of a sure beginning. So, to enjoy my art and to experience an end, we must... begin."
"The short speech came to an end,
Your breached mind came to a bend,
The great Galileo reaps what he's sown,
Your existence is property, and now it is owned."
Life ceased as you had your existence seized... The eyes could still be felt, but could not be reacted to or properly located. The feeling was becoming even less describable as every aspect of yourself and everything you know was twisted into position. Every sense voided, including that of time, and yet you remained conscious. Weight applied in all directions, skin burned at all points, yet no pressure or pain. Time moved at accelerated speeds, but not a moment passed. The foreground of your life was pulled away and replaced with a new one. Just in the moment that your actions suddenly had consequence again, your mind began to speak a second time, this time as if there were multiple listeners...