The Next Big Thing

This was the worst job interview of Jenna's life.

It had begun so optimistically. She had been working for the same ad agency for five years - five years of uninspiring work, disrespectful managers and late hours. She had always seen herself as a true creative, and wholeheartedly believed her writing and artistic talents were meant to be lauded. Jenna wanted to be doing work that was daring, bold, ambitious!

She hadn't envisioned this...

One of the greats of her industry, an enigmatic man simply known as Gradien, had finally resurfaced - he was responsible for some of the greatest and celebrated art installations the world had ever seen. He was thought retired as no one had heard from him in nearly ten years. There were rumours however, that he was planning his next piece, and that he was seeking a single person to help him bring his next creation to life.

It was said that Gradien was choosing from creatives the world over - artists from all walks of life, and that he would choose just one person. What was more, they would receive a letter in the mail, bearing Gradien's famous logo, with nothing more than an address inside. Jenna wouldn't have believed such absurd stories, if not for one fateful Friday morning when she received exactly that.

Jenna couldn't believe it.

She had packed immediately. The rumours claimed what awaited her was a kind of test to see whether the hopeful had what it took. The young woman had travelled to the destination where she found a helicopter, with some hesitation she boarded - the pilot not willing to speak a word. Eventually they landed somewhere remote, she hadn't seen a single building or road for ages whilst flying overhead. At last, the pilot had spoken, telling her to follow the river - and Jenna had no choice but to obey that instruction.

Eventually, she found the home - a remarkable bit of organic architecture. Inside, there was tablet setup to play a single video. On it was the enigmatic figure himself! Gradien spoke highly of Jenna's work but wanted to ensure she had the grit to succeed on this next venture of his. He was still quite handsome, sporting a short salt and pepper beard, with more than a few flecks of grey in his hair. The video told the woman that he would be joining her in a couple of days, but for now there were several tasks that he wanted done.

The first task was to find the key to her room, the clues to its location were based on Jenna's own creative works in her career. The second was simple; consume the vial labelled 'Drink Me' in her room. The third seemed straightforward enough; once the vial was consumed, she had to use the notebook in her room to craft a treatise on the biggest challenges facing artists in the last ten years, and how to overcome them. The fourth and final task would be provided once Gradien arrived.

Jenna had found the key after a couple of hours and was impressed at how deeply the clues incorporated her own work. Her confidence was swelled, but she had spent most of the day getting to the home itself. The woman decided to get some rest and tackle the next tasks in the morning. The home itself was cosy with an almost rustic quality, there was more clutter than she expected, and it was a far cry from the sleek and industrial offices she had spent her creative career in.

Upon awaking in the empty home, she had made herself some breakfast, got herself dressed in case Gradien arrived early, and then found the vial she was instructed to drink. She was so flush with her initial success yesterday; she didn't spend too much time weighing whether this was a smart idea. Before she could reconsider, the glass container was empty. Her eyes travelled to where the notebook lay open, Jenna licked her lips of the bitter taste, and took a single step towards her task.

One step was all it took.

Her world shifted rapidly, drastically, enormously.

She had screamed, not understanding how this was possible. Her initial interpretation of the world growing around her was quickly dismissed. Jenna had shrunk, and tried to recompose herself as she realized she was roughly the size of a doll!

How was this possible? Was the vial simply a hallucinagen? How was she going to get back to her normal size? Was she stuck like this? Did Gradien know this would happen?!

After minutes or hours - she wasn't sure - Jenna finally steadied herself, quietly thankful that her outfit had somehow shot down with her and took a deep breath. She had heard that Gradien was eccentric, brilliant, even called half-mad by some, and now Jenna believed it. However, there was a small part of her that wondered what this next project was that the strange man was planning...

Jenna had somehow become doll sized. Whatever lay ahead of her, if she were to succeed it would surely be daring, bold, ambitious...

The tiny woman resigned herself to her fate, now determined to succeed at the next task. Reaching the top of the desk had been an ordeal, and required beyond creative solutions from the tiny woman, but there were enough items in her room that made it possible - almost as though it had been planned that way.

At last, the woman was finally on the enormous desk, facing down an equally enormous pen...

Jenna frowned as she strode towards it. Grumpily deciding she knew exactly what the biggest challenge facing her was...