Introducing

Thomas rose to consciousness with a gentle shaking of his arm. He blinked several times and then looked at the flight attendant shaking him.

"Sir, everyone else has finished deplaning."

He nodded, getting up and shuffling to the aisle, where the attendant helped him get his suitcase down. He left the plane, bobbing his head toward the two flight attendants.

‘What a day. The conference is tomorrow. I still have to get my speech prepared.’ He mused, slowly walking through the airport.

He was selected to give a short introduction speech to the attendees. Thomas supposed that the committee for planning conferences picked him out of many more prestigious speakers for a simple reason. He was not charging them anything other than a hotel room and food. It did not hurt that his ex-wife was on the committee and had a soft spot for him.

“It could also be that this is a less prestigious event, and they did not care who was the speaker.” Thomas frowned.

Either way, it was not like he was going to fuck up the conference. His speech would precede hours of others presenting their research topics. The one he was most curious about was an analysis of the Ukraine Conflict of the 20s. He had been a boy when the hostilities started.

“What was the specific topic about again? Was it on logistics or the importance of aid or…” He buried his mind into the task as his feet walked him out the gate, past baggage claim, for he had none, and into the external terminal. Memory took him towards a part of the airport where a local bus would pick him up.

Breaking his ruminations, he glanced up to see that the bus had pulled up. Smiling at the good fortune, he increased his pace and hopped on. Taking his wallet out for the fare, he nodded at the driver as he put the bills in. He noted that no one else was on the bus. He trotted to the nearest seat and sat. He took a notepad and pen out of his jacket pocket and started on that speech he was supposed to give.

A solid thirty minutes passed by when he finished writing down his speech. He sighed with satisfaction at the address. For a brief introduction to the conference, it looked good. He planned to practice speaking it out loud in the hotel room later. Looking up, he saw his stop coming up. Sighing, he got up, noting other passengers had gotten on the bus. He put the notepad into his pocket, grabbed his luggage, and departed the bus.

As he got off the bus, an old lady crashed into him. Items from her purse and his pockets spilled all over the ground. They both started to apologize for the interruption. He carefully picked up the phone, ChapStick, lip gloss, and coins she dropped. He promptly handed them to her. She thanked him and gave him back several pieces of paper and a worn leather diary. She waved goodbye and boarded the bus. After securing his items in his luggage, he headed out toward his hotel.

After a block of walking, he reached his destination of the Hpatt Legency. Smiling a little, he entered the lobby and made a straight line to the check-in. He wanted to get some practice of the speech in and crash for the rest of the day.

As the clerk checked him in, he glanced toward the bar and restaurant. Should he go and grab a bite right now? He decided against it. He noticed that flight attendants from the airplane were there at the bar of all places. Well, he was not one to judge that. Sometimes, you need a good stiff drink after a long day.

A tinge of familiarity passed over him as he got his key from the front desk. He looked past the relatively neutral clerk and towards the manager's door. A distinctive voice was emanating through the frame. It had a timbre of pent-up frustration. Moving to the elevators, he contemplated why that voice was so familiar. As he rode the elevator up, it suddenly came to him. That voice belonged to a recent student of his. The reason for the familiarity was that she came to his office to ask questions. It was mostly about what he said in the lecture that day, although it could be something else. Most people took his virtual office hours if they were bothered at all. She was very passionate and stubborn, as he recalled. They had many intellectual sparring matches. What she was doing here was not his concern.

Pleased that he had solved what was bothering him, he stepped out onto the seventh floor. He located the room number that the clerk told him. With the swipe of the keycard, he opened the room. Before he stepped into the room, Thomas suddenly felt dizzy. He stretched out his hand and stumbled for the wall. Darkness ate his consciousness away.

In a flash of smoke, a man appeared on the stage. His static shock of white hair gave the man’s 5 '10 " frame more height. His sky-blue eyes complimented his gray-pressed suit. They stared through big black frame spectacles perched on his crooked nose. He slowly turned around on the stage, looking at everything around him.

"Welcome. Welcome. Are you tired from that journey? Most of our participants seem dazed and a little nauseous for sure.” Justine purred.

With an eyebrow raised, Thomas responded, "So you are the gatekeeper of the afterlife. I don't know what I thought a guardian of the afterlife would be like. Somehow, I conjure up something the Greeks would have seen. But certainly, I would not imagine you."

Justine bowed slightly, “Ahh, I take that as a compliment. I am more flesh and bone than old man Styx. Nor am I a big hairy dog. By the way, it is slightly rude to talk like I am not here. I do have a name. I’m Justine. I am the host. Now, would you please introduce yourself?”

Thomas stared calculatingly at her before replying, “An interview for the afterlife. Who would have imagined that? Well, I am Dr. Thomas Haywood, I turned seventy-nine, and I was a history professor at the University of Deneri. Now, would you tell me what I am supposed to do? I presume there is some trial on my deeds in life.”

“Thank you for that little self-introduction. A tad light on the details, but I’m sure we’ll get to the juicy parts soon. Would you please come down and sit next to me?” Justine gave a come here gesture.

As Thomas hesitated, she clapped her hands, and the tall Asian butler appeared beside him. Gripping Thomas' arm with surprising strength, he dragged Thomas toward the sofa.

As the butler let go of Thomas and walked away, Justine grinned, “Please excuse Justin there. He is just doing what I need to get this show moving. And dear, you are not in the afterlife. You’re at a shooting location for Harem Hotel!”

Deciding that there was a script that this person was following, Thomas gingerly lowered himself onto the sofa.

Gently wrapping an arm around him, Justine cooed, “And by the way, while you look fabulous for seventy-nine, you are getting a makeover. The audience loves a good makeover. And I think they like this one. As for Harem Hotel being a trial, only if you let it be that. I prefer to refer to Harem Hotel as a vacation with more perks, at least for you.”

Thomas looked coolly at Justine, “You have an oddly pedantic view. Then what the heck is Harem Hotel, if not a trial for the afterlife?”

She giggled and exclaimed, “Dear me. Please forgive me. Harem Hotel is a version of a reality TV show. You know the type of shows. Contestants compete for the favor of the host, bachelor, or master. Well. Instead of romance and implied monogamy, all contestants here will compete for favorable positions in your harem.”

Thomas struggling to remove her arm unsuccessfully, stated, “Well, I am surprised. I have not done anything in particular for this kind of reward. I mean doing my due diligence to be kind and help expand knowledge as best I can. Did not think that was enough for this peculiar afterlife.”

Imperceptible to the cameras, Justine squeezed till he stopped moving, “Ahh, sweety, it's adorable that you still think this is the afterlife. Although we are not opposed to taking people from certain places, we have not pulled you from the dead. You, my dear, are very much alive. And you are the Master of this season.”

Thomas swallowed what he would say and asked, “What is a Master in this Harem Hotel? What do I need to do for that role? ”

“Well, that's the best part.” She gave a slithering grin, “You don’t have to do anything explicitly! You need to be a handsome face and just chat with me. It will be the contestants that will be doing things. Well, maybe you’ll have to do some dates and other activities with your lovely harem members.”

Thomas’ mind spun wildly around. What this person was saying was, well, batshit. How could this be anything but a dream or the afterlife? He felt a squishy sensation with Justine’s arm wrapped around him. The smile of cinnamon wafting around. He could taste something sour in the back of his throat. All of that indicated that he was not dreaming. For the other option, this felt like a test, no matter what this lady said. Possibly, it was a trial of character to refuse. However, if that lady was telling the truth, he was alive and in an impossible situation.

Justine’s smile flicked into a snarl before snapping back to a smile. None of the cameras caught it. Only one pair of eyes saw it.

She murmured, “Honey, you’re no fun at all. Most people in your position are more panicky than you are being or at least show some emotion.”

Her free arm lackadaisically moved around, “No matter. We see if the first contestant will shake you out of that emotional stupor.”

Thomas snapped, “I’ll say you’re a terrible person. Your selecting random people from wherever and bringing them here is cruel. Plus, getting your kicks out of my reaction is hardly amusing.”

Justine grinned impishly, ”Oh Doc, there’s that emotion I’m looking for. By the way, you do know these people. Let’s bring a contestant that you just heard. Please welcome ...”