- the Dragonstone Scrolls Vol. 2 -

Door 7: House of Black and White

If I could invent something, what would it be?

It could be so easy to say ‘a time machine’ and be done with it, but this would be a little bit different. We’re in an age of technological advances, right? So, instead of some bulky device with steampunk-inspired buttons and knobs, this particular time machine is going to simply be in the form of the common VR headset.

We call it – The Momentorium GXV

The beauty of the Momentorium is its lightweight feel, classy design that doesn’t make you look too goofy when you wear it, and the added option to custom-fit the equipment to match your style for any occasion. Even better? It can fit into any compartment due to its foldable design. Not as bulky as the old ones, eh?

However, the headsets only come in disposable form. Why? Because it’s for one-time use only!
Going back in Time is tricky business, folks. A lot of things could go so very wrong, especially the one common mistake of doing something incredibly dumb and screwing up the timeline for future generations.

That isn’t happening with the Momentorium GXV.

Instead of spending endless hours wandering around in another time, the Momentorium allows you to pick one particular moment in Time – any Time – where you get the opportunity to see the events as they unfold without the risk of messing things up.
How? You ask.

Easy. The genius of the Momentorium is that you are taken into the exact moment you desperately want to re-visit. For instance, if you still have regrets never saying how you felt for someone very important to you before they passed away, you can set the Momentorium to that very time you last spent with that person. The actual transportation might feel a bit weird – sort of like being sucked into a vacuum, but the sensation quickly passes. The program is set to allow you to remain there for no longer than 24-hours at a time, however, which is why we encourage you to make every moment count.

Once there, you are transformed into your former self, and voila! You can finally have that conversation you always wanted.

Hey! You might wonder. What about all talk about changing the future? Won’t it all change if I tell that person how I really feel?

The answer to that is ‘no’. The Momentorium GXV has been designed to make sure that moment remains frozen in Time forever. You cannot bring the dead back to life, or make him fall in love with you, or wish your favourite team had won that all-deciding game, but this device will give you a chance to see the possibilities of what could have been. It’s the hope that for just that moment, you get to enjoy some measure of closure.

Results from our focus groups show that the Momentorium was a hit among grieving families, and I’m sure it will be a hit with the general population as well. It will come at an affordable price, so anyone can have access to it.

So, look out at your local stores for its launch very soon.

Disclaimer: The Momentorium GXV comes with complimentary anti-sickness pills for those who suffer the side-effects of being tossed back and forth so quickly between Time.

WC: 548

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If I could change one thing, what would it be?

Ah, that one tricky and sensitive topic for so many of us, but I have to face it and try to deal with it as best I can. What issue is this?

Weight loss.

Yep. I have been there and done that, and I have been up and down and sideways with this body of mine.

I was a chubby baby, but in my childhood and teenage years, I was as skinny as a twig. You could say it was perhaps thanks to growing up in a country that forced me to be a whole lot more active or maybe there just weren’t any of the devices today that make it so easy to sit put and get everything done at the push of a button. Either way, I was more outdoorsy and hence could burn up the calories quick enough.

However, moving to the States, being spoiled by rich(er) processed foods and lunging into the influx of smartphones and computers, I became lazier and didn’t take of myself as well as I could and should have. I gained the pounds and my family never let me hear the end of it.
My mother, especially, is quite determined to remind me of my size and tries to do her best to make me feel guilty over it. (That is a whole other matter altogether)

I joined gyms, got personal fitness coaches, tried several different diet programs…and yes, the weight did come off, but it all quickly went back on when I decided to take a break or two.

Eventually, I had to decide if I wanted to be skinny just to make people happy or to remain healthy in general?

I chose the latter.

I will not starve myself just so I can fit into anyone’s idea of what true beauty looks like. I will eat what I like, but in moderation, and I will do my daily exercise, which includes walking to and from work (lucky I live close to the hospital).

Getting older does come with aches and pains especially with my joints, and there is a looming surgery in the horizon, but all the same, I think I’m in a good place where I intend to remain.

WC: 380

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Time was invented 5,000 years ago.

Guess that’s good to know, and perhaps I’d have gone through the rest of my life not thinking too much about it, but I’m cursed to be one of those curious types.

I often wonder how these things even come about. Who decided someday to just point at the sky and decide – ‘oh, this will be one o’clock because the sun looks that way’, and then ‘oh, that will be midnight because it’s super pitch-black outside’.

I mean, why does a day have 24 hours? Why does an hour have 60 minutes? And why does a minute have 60 seconds? I’m sure if I google it, I’ll find all the answers I want, but why bother? Those who spent so much time setting things up got it right, I guess. Kudos to their big brains.

My only gripe is the need for Daylight Savings, where Time has to be forwarded an hour or reduced an hour. For someone in my profession, it’s a brutal switch, especially when I have to lose an extra hour of oh-so-sweet-and-precious sleep. Ah, the torture!

I get it was probably done because of farmers – or something along those lines – but my goodness! If I could be the Time Commissioner ™, I’d abolish that rule. Let Time do what it wants and stop messing up people’s sleep patterns – which are already messed up enough as it is. Circadian Rhythm anyone?

WC: 240




Prompt ▼

First coffee machine was invented in the 1800's.
Coffee was discovered sometime in 800 AD.

(Same entry/item for all three - all must be 500 words or less)
1. Invent something useful
If you could invent something, what would it be and why?
Put some thought into it

2. Make Changes
If you could change one thing what would it be? Why? Why not?
What kind of outcome would it have on you? On others?

3. Time
(Time was invented some 5000 years ago)
Would you change it? Yes? No? Why? Why not?
What changes would follow it?