The djinn backed away from me, twirling on its heel before finding a seat on my tattered sofa.

"What? Not going to ask if I want a drink." Its tone had lightened. It was still amused, which I figured was best for my safety, so I kept it that way. The djinn started to look dissatisfied, putting me further on edge. It addressed me a little louder than the first time "Well?... I don't tolerate being made to wait for long..." It wanted me to play its game. To squirm and bend to its whims. Knowing this was pointless, I haven't stood up for myself against anyone, much less an ancient demon.

"I'm s-s-so sorry... Do you have a name? Would you prefer djinn?" I tested the waters, I was horrified of making any offense.

The djinn seemed to reflect on my question for but a moment, "It matters not" it replied "I've been called by many names, it's all human nonsense" It quickly lost interest in that discussion and moved back on topic. "Michael... I hate wasting time." Its mood darkened. "You will tell me your desire. Be specific... or don't, I only benefit from your idiocy." Yes, I was terrified of the creature, but at the same time, I was elated that I found the right one. I had hope, there was a way to get her back!

"Michael... put the tea on... now." My lack of hospitality was becoming offensive, I was scared shitless, what could it expect? I darted out of the room and started boiling some water in my kettle.

The djinn was in a better mood, appreciating my skittish attitude and hesitation. "Tell me about your mother... Michael." I got that one. Didn't laugh, couldn't really. I could only hope that the djinn wouldn't be bothered by the lack of a reaction. I mustered up the courage to speak my piece in front of the creature.

"She was the m-m-most important person in my life." My voice was quiet and I stuttered, Father would have been deeply disappointed with my weakness. "My only friend, my only family. Without her, I don't know how to live. The world is too loud, too big, it's hell out there, I'm safe in here... but the loneliness is starting to screw with me. I'm losing my mind.." The djinn leaned forward attentively, but to me, it looked like it was getting in position to pounce on me and... eat me? Take my soul? I had no idea what I was dealing with. The mounting horror of making one wrong step was in the front of my mind, and my request was further back. "She was gentle and protective and never gave up on me-" the kettle whistled loudly.

"The tea is ready. Are you going to keep prattling on or will you make me a cup?" The djinn interrupted.

"Yes, I-I'm so sorry, one moment" It was toying with me and I couldn't say a single thing about it. I brought back the tea to the djinn, it was standing closer to me, staring intensely when I entered the room.

"Put the tea down over there." It gestured to an end table. "I've become bored with your backstory..." It paused, likely for dramatic effect, "I can create a reality... just for you, where your mother will be alive and healthy. Is that what you desire?... Yes or no." The djinn looked at me impatiently. Ahh, it never cared about the tea, did it I couldn't help but have this completely irrelevant and obvious thought.

"Y-Yes that's exactly what I want." I quickly replied. It was happening, this fucked up mistake of Mother dying, it could be made right!

"There will be a cost... One most steep... How about your life, hmm? Are you willing to die for your precious mother?" The djinn's nasty grin was widening. "You love her, don't you? You owe her everything, don't you?" Its face drew closer to mine. "Well?" I froze. At that moment I realized the depths of my cowardice. No matter how awful life was, no matter how much I suffered, I was too afraid to die. If I sacrificed my life to save Mother's I wouldn't even be around to be by her side. So what would be the point? When I die, it all dies with me. I was selfish. I disgusted myself. But nothing was more important than my life. Nothing is worth braving the horrors of hell, or the long quiet of an infinite darkness after my consciousness slipped away. I can't give my life, even for her. Mother would have understood, she always put me first. I couldn't live without her so she shouldn't be able to live without me.

"I can't give my life... anything but that." I turned away while softly admitting this. I couldn't bring myself to look into its glowing pale yellow eyes. It stood high over me, that awful grin plastered to its face.

It snickered derisively. It spoke with a perfect replication of Father's voice, "Well... aren't you a sorry excuse for a son... and for a man..." It finished while its long frame stood looking down at me. I recoiled in fear at the reminder of the person who hurt me most throughout my life. How does it know that voice?! It looked down at me like I was its plaything. The djinn spoke again now sounding exactly like Mother, "You would let me die? Right? You wouldn't abandon me? Right? Not after all that I've done for you..." I was on the verge of tears, broken beyond belief. I sat on the floor with my head in my hands.

The djinn spoke again slowly and returned to its normal voice. The djinn placed one finger on my forehead, "Well... if you won't give your life, you will have to give me something far more tantalizing... Your mind."

"W-W-What do you mean my mind?" I responded confused and concerned. One look at the djinn told me that I gave him the exact response he wanted.

"Well Michael, I have grown old... I have seen thousands of humans live and die, but I feel as though my curiosity has yet to be satiated. I enjoy humans, they're full of endless possibilities." The djinn backed into the middle of the room, its arms spread wide. Its theatrics were haunting, the way it moved was inhuman, with no mistakes, no wasted movements. "I know too little about the human mind... I want to take it, stretch it, and mold it. I want to pull the threads of sanity to the absolute limit..." The djinn had a wistful look about it. "My past subjects snapped, they are now useless carcasses, filling spaces in hospitals, their catatonic bodies being spoon-fed slop... You, Michael... have something different." It held out its hand. "Join me in a little experiment, that is all I ask..." I flinched as his hand drew closer to me

"What do you mean different?... And what kind of... experiment?" I cautiously asked, staring at the floor.

"Firstly, why not find that out for yourself? It will be more... impactful that way. Secondly, it's quite simple really, I want to test your mental fortitude... to find the human limit. I want to isolate you, Michael... Isolate you so completely that this world will be a distant dream. You will remain in your solitude for, what will feel like, 100 years. Not a second will have passed out here." The djinn's excited pace picked up at the prospect of my situation. "If you give up before the time is up, you will never see your mother again... and, of course, you will pay for wasting my time." Its hand beckoned out to my own, "Do we have a deal..." It never dropped that nightmarish smile.

I frantically called out, "Ww-wait! I have so many questions! Will I-"

"No more questions Michael, I will not physically harm you, all you have to do is stay in the space I create for you. I will not sabotage you, the whole purpose of this is to gain knowledge... I would not ruin that." The djinn was becoming impatient, once again. "This is your last chance to back out freely... But you wouldn't do that... Michael... Shake. my. hand."

I was staring down the barrel, the hand in front of me held promises of... salvation? Damnation? Maybe something in between. The situation was so out of my control that all I could do was go along with anything that came at me. At that moment after he finished his pitch, I came to an epiphany. If I took the djinn's deal, if I tried and succeeded, I would have my life back. If I tried and failed, I would lose my life, just sooner, and messier. If I never tried at all I would be forced to live out my miserable existence until I begged for death, without being able to take my own life. The consequence of not trying was just as bad as that of trying and failing. I had nothing to lose. Or so I thought. The djinn's massive hand swallowed up my own as we shook on the deal.

The djinn sent me off with his ironic words of encouragement, "Well, Michael... Welcome to a century of nothingness. I cannot wait to see your human brain erode and crack. Good luck... you might find solitude to be a friend. You may also find it a torturous burden. See you in 100 years." The djinn's eyes glowed brilliantly until all I could see was yellow light. After that I blacked out, having taken my final look at a world of substance.

My body felt like it was falling for hours. When I came to, I was in a white space, a space so perfectly and flawlessly white that I could hardly judge its dimensions. I was dressed in some kind of simple loose clothing that could not be pried off despite my every effort. The floor had no friction whatsoever. My every attempt to get up led to my falling over and over again. There was no bed, no bathroom, and nothing in the room aside from the flawless walls, floor, and ceiling, except for a single object on a single shelf out of reach. An hourglass the size of my body trickled sand at a snail's pace, what must have been one grain a minute. I scooted myself across the floor until I was up against the smooth, slick walls. The first day of my new life began.

Day One

I spent most of the day acclimating to my new environment, every little thing threw me off. There was no smell, nothing. There was no sound whatsoever. There were no shadows. There was no temperature, that one is the hardest to explain, but I felt no hot or cold, just a temperature that didn't register with my brain. My mind sent warning signals that this state was wrong, that the world was missing so much, I had an initial panic about the feeling of being so completely trapped, but this isolation wasn't new to me. I lived almost my entire life in a few hundred square feet and didn't want it any other way. I was built for isolation, I had been training for this my entire life. As it turned out, this isolation was different. I was used to a computer, then I had no entertainment. I was used to the food, but then I didn't feel hungry. I was used to bodily needs, but then I had none. I was alone with my own mind and was starting to feel the burden. What if the djinn was lying? I thought, What if I never make it out of here? I was frantic, What if I'm dead? What if meeting the djinn was a dream? My mind raced, finding more and more disastrous outcomes. I'm not going to make it! But if I quit, who knows what it will do to me... I sat against the wall, I may not have felt my heartbeat, but my mind was scrambling. It had been but one day and the cracks were already showing. It could have been one second instead of a day for all that I knew. The hourglass was no help and I had no way to track time. I was lost, the century ahead of me was a death sentence. I cried without tears. I should have just waited to die a lonely death I thought, defeated. If I've been pushed this far in one day, I will be a shattered tragedy after the time is up. Even though I needed Mother more than anything, I was in over my head. I wouldn't have a single coherent thought left by the end of my imprisonment.

Day 30?

I had been counting since the first day without stopping for a second. The numbers in my head kept the flood of thoughts and fears at bay. Then, my resolve ran out, the numbers couldn't quiet the screaming in my mind. I heard voices. Echos of the past and warnings for the future.

"Michale you can give up!" my eight-year-old self told me. "This is a mistake, Mother wouldn't have wanted this! We can't handle this!"

My older self berated me for my stupidity "You made your bed, you moron, now lie in it. That thing out there is probably gonna kill or maim you the second you quit." He told me. "There's nothing you can do. You'll go insane in here, what's the point of living anyways? Once your mind's gone..."

I heard my Mother telling me to give up for my safety, "Michael please!" she cried, "I want you to be happy, without or without me." Tears streamed down her face. "I love you Michael... even if you would abandon me." Her final words cut deep.

Father told me to grow up, "You're a pussy. You don't have it in you. You're only doing this for your self-satisfaction. Be a man, don't give up, even if it kills you!" Father shouted. "For once in your life see something through to the end! Who gives a shit if you make it out in one piece!" Father's voice drowned out every last thought.

On the very edge of insanity, I made a decision. If I were trapped away from the real world, I would make my own. Reality was cruel, I thought I could do better. My cracking mind was ready to believe anything I put it to. I had nothing to occupy me and all the time in the world. Mental construction began work on my new cozy town, one where everybody loved me and they all knew my name.