By: Isaac Yuan

It was the year 2035 when a very high-tech virtual reality headset called the Time Machine was invented. Anyone could use it after they passed the test, that is if they could afford it. It was 500 thousand dollars for one use of the machine, and one particular family was willing to spend that much money. The Smiths were multimillionaires , and Jason Smith, the youngest person in the family, wanted to try it. He was only eleven years old, but he was still willing to go inside . This VR headset puts the player into a hyper-realistic simulation in which the player can feel (he/she will be wearing a suit that folds in whenever he/she touches a simulated object), smell (I did tell you that the headset was very sophisticated, right?) and see (no explanation needed). But let me just tell you the story already. So, the Smiths paid their 500 thousand dollars, and Jason stepped into the machine.

“You’re ready to go!” said the manager. “Sending you into – uhh… I mean… activating the headset in five… four… three… two… one! Jason felt a lurching sensation, and then, suddenly, he was in a jungle. Next to him were many small dinosaurs. “Wow,” he said to himself. He never thought the dinosaurs were going to be so realistic. Then he reached over to touch them. He could feel the textures of the dinosaurs! Suddenly, the going-to-be-extinct creature bit his hand. “Ow!” he said. Jason finally realized something was wrong. Was pain supposed to be a part of the program? Why did he feel a lurching sensation? Why were there no controllers that had buttons to make him walk or run? Before he could think about it, though, a fierce roar echoed through the forest. Suddenly, Jason heard a noise that sounded like a very heavy, 40-foot long, and 12-foot-high predator was coming. A second later, he was running for his life, with the Tyrannosaurus rex close behind. A watch on Jason’s wrist that he didn’t notice said, “Ten seconds until departure.” The T. Rex was gaining on him! “Nine.” It was right next to him now! “Eight.” An ankylosaurus blocked the T. rex’s way! “Seven.” The T. rex tripped on the ankylosaurus! “Six. Five. Four.” The T. rex broke through. “Three.” Jason kept on running, but he was far too slow. “Two.” The T. rex was about to chomp! Jason had no choice. “ONE.” He ducked and waited… the chomp never came. Jason was back in the modern world. He made it.