"So all I have to do is sign this and I'll be on the show?" Cole says to the lady in front of him. "Yes! Just read it over if you'd like, sign at the bottom and we will be good to go!". Cole thinks for a moment. Is this really a good idea? I don't even know what this show is exactly. The advertisement just asks for physically fit applicants ready to test their skills in a new survival reality show. They'll probably just throw us on an island somewhere and see how long we make it before tapping out or something.
He reads over the contract a little. Nothing seems too unusual. Before signing he looks up at the lady one more time and asks a question. "So what exactly is this show? What are we signing up for?".
She smiles and says "We can't reveal too much but it's similar to other shows focused on adapting and surviving in strange locations. I know you probably want a little more detail but to keep the show more entertaining we need the location and goals to be a surprise".
Cole nods and hesitantly signs the contract.
"Perfect! You're all set, just head down the hall and wait in the last room on the left so we can prepare you for the show".
Cole thanks the lady and walks down the hall and into a room that looks similar to a patient's room in a hospital. He assumes he's going to get a physical or something before being flown off to god knows where.
After waiting around a bit a woman in a nurse's outfit walks in holding a cup of what looks like orange juice.
"Helo Cole! I just need you to drink this and we will move on to the next step to prepare you for the show." she says.
She hands the cup to Cole. Cole looks at it with a puzzled look on his face. "What is this?" he asks. "Once you drink it we will be able to fully examine you and get you on to the show!" she says.
Well that didn't answer my question at all. Cole shrugs and drinks the strange liquid. At first, he doesn't feel anything. Soon after he gets a headache. "Hey nurse, I think that liquid is giving me a headache. Is that normal?" he asks."That just means it's working." she replies.
Cole's eyes start to feel heavy. He starts fighting off a strong urge to fall asleep."Nurse......I don't......I......think......tired." Cole says right before he passes out.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Two men enter the room with a stretcher. They lift Cole up and place him on it. They carry him out of the room and into another full of large machines with people strapped up to them.
"He can go in that one." one of the guys say. The two men sit Cole down in the machine and hook him up.
"I can't believe these people are okay with this. Experimental tech like this scares me." one guy says."
I don't think they even know about it yet. From what I've heard they all think they're going to be flown out somewhere or something.
I don't think the players here will like the surprise too much but the viewers probably will." the other man replies.They flip a few switches on the machine and leave the room.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cole wakes up and finds himself laying on the ground.
What the hell happened?
He slowly gets up and looks around. He sees five other people around him. It takes a moment for him to look arround at his surroundings but when he does, he notices something terrifying to him.
He now stands in the middle of a living room, but it's astonishingly massive in scale.
What the fuck! Why is this room so big! Or, are we small? If so we'd be like ants at this size. What the fuck is going on!
Cole joins the group of people.
"This is kind of cool!" one girl says.
"So what is this going to be like one of those shows where a bunch of people are living together but they're bug sized? Seems kinda silly to me." a guy says before noticing you.
"Hey! Welcome to the group. We all woke up a little before you so I'll introduce myself. My name is John. I'm 24 years old. I'm from Colorado and I do rock climbing".
"Wow do you always introduce yourself like a typical reality TV star John? Anyway, I'm Marissa. I'm a cook in my hometown".
"Hello! My name is Allison. I've been playing soccer for years and trying to go pro. Figured this would be good exposure for me".
"My name is Arron. I just want to be a famous influencer."
"And I'm Josh. I don't know why I'm here. I signed up as a joke and for some reason they picked me".
Cole smiles and shakes everyone's hands. "Nice to meet you all. My name is Cole. I'm a personal trainer. Sorry to cut right to the chase but do any of you know what is going on here?".
"Nope! The last thing we all remember is drinking some weird orange drink, then waking up here." Allison says.
"I'm sure they'll explain the rules to us soon." Josh says.
The group talk about more theories on what the show is about. After a few minutes of talking Cole notices a thumping noise coming from another room. "What do you think that is?" Cole asks the group. "Maybe it's a regular sized person." John says sarcastically, the whole group laughs.
The door opens. Three giant women walk in.
"What the fuck! I was right! No way!" John says in shock.
7pm at a random suburban home. A husband comes home to his wife.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Hey hunny. I'm home! Work was awful today."
"I'm sorry to hear that darling! Sit down! I made some dinner for us. We can watch this new show while we eat."
"New show? What's it about?"
"I'm not really sure. Some kind of new reality show, or game show or something. The ads said there would be a big surprise with a lot of emphasis on big for some reason. I'm a little curious."
"Okay sure, let's check it out."
The couple turns on the TV. Loud music plays and a normal looking house appears on screen.
"Welcome to the very first episode of Diminished! I know you're all excited to see what we have in store for you so let's get it started!"
The screen changes and shows a group of people talking to each other. Then, suddenly the camera shifts back revealing the people to be the size of small bugs in comparison to the house.
"Wow! Look at them! Bet you didn't expect that huh? Well the name of the show is Diminished after all! How will they ever survive being that size? What will they do for food? Where will they sleep? How long will they be stuck like this? All your questions will be answered!
The camera zooms in closer to the tiny people.
"Let's meet the contestants!"
One by one they show each of the tiny people and play clips of them introducing themselves to each other.
The camera pans closer to the front door.
"Is that not enough for you though? Do you want more!"
The door opens. Three regular sized girls walk in.
"Boom! We didn't stop there! We're bringing in three more contestants! As you can see, they're not small! This might be bad for the little ones! let's meet the last three contestants!"
The screen zooms in on one of the girls.
"Meet Amber!"
A short introduction from Amber plays.
"Hi my name is Amber! I'm not here to mess around. I plan on winning this game no matter what! The tiny people better pray they don't have to go up against me! I will show them no mercy!"
"Oooh she's scary isn't she folks? I wouldn't wanna be a tiny in that house right now! Now let's meet our next contestant, Lilly!
A short introduction for Lilly plays.
"My name is Lilly! I think the idea of being in a house with little people is so cute! they're just so tiny I want to kiss them! Don't get me wrong, I still want to win but I'll have as much fun as I can while I'm here! "
"Adorable! Let's not count her out though, anything can happen when the real games begin! What do I mean by real games? You'll find out soon! Now to the final contestant, Emma!
A short introduction for Emma plays.
"Hey everyone I'm Emma! I've honestly just been a bit bored lately and thought this show would be kinda fun! I can't wait to see what games we will play!
"A bit generic but I love the honesty! Now let me explain a little more on what you'll be seeing here tonight. The tiny people you saw earlier had no idea what was about to happen! They must have been terrified when that door opened! The producers thought it would be more entertaining if they went in blind. You think that's a bit cruel? Well check this out! They tiny ones are all hooked up to a fancy new machine that creates little clones of themselves that they control with their minds! What's that? Unrealistic? Nonsense! It's just experimental tech and there's nothing wrong with using it! Anyway, if any of our tiny contestants happen to perish, they'll be perfectly fine and wake up back at our studio. Here's the thing though, they don't know anything about that either! All of their emotions will be real! The threat of death will surely be a massive detriment to their mental health! Is any of this legal? Surprisingly, yes! Anything is possible with signed contracts! Now, let's take a look and see how things are going in the house!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Why did I have to be right for once! It was a joke!" John says in a panic.
"We can't stay here we have to hide or something!" Allison suggests.
The group all agrees and start running.
"Quick! Under there!" Cole says, pointing at the couch.
They all scramble under the couch and wait. The three girls walk around the living room, unaware of the where the tiny people are hiding.
"Do you think they'll find us?" Josh says.
"I think we should wait here until we know more about what's going on OH NO THEY'RE HEADING OUR WAY!" Aaron says.
The girls all sit down on the couch.
"Should we wait here for the tinies to come out and greet us?" Lilly says.
"They're probably hiding and pissing themselves right now. They gave us this phone for a reason, let's use it." Amber says, while taking a phone out of her pocket. She dials a number.
Below the couch, Josh's phone starts ringing.
"What the fuck? My phone? I didn't even realize I had it with me. Caller ID says Amber but I don't know an Amber. Weird." Josh takes his phone out and answers it.
"Uhhhh, hello?"
"Hey tiny bitch. Why don't you go ahead and tell me where you're all hiding at?"
"What! Who is this! Can you help us!"
"Help you? Haha! No! I know you saw us come in through the front door a minute ago. We're out here waiting on the couch. Why don't you come on out and meet us?"
"Oh uh.....ok. You promise you wont hurt us right?"
"We won't hurt you. Not until the games start at least."
"Alright. I'll talk to the group and see if they're okay with it. We'll come out and talk."
"Can't wait to meet you Josh. You sound tasty."
Amber hangs up the phone.
Josh puts his phone away.
Tasty? She thinks I sound hot or something? Cool! Josh thinks to himself.
"Hey guys, she said they won't hurt us if we come out and talk to them. I think we probably should."
"That might be our only option right now so I agree." Marissa says.
"Okay, let's go then!"
The group walk out from under the couch. The girls notice them.
"There they are! Hi tinies! You're all so cute down there! Like little ants!" Lilly says.
The tinies and the girls stare at each other a while. Neither really knowing what to do next.
Suddenly, a text tone goes off on everyone's phone. They all pull out their phones to check it.
It says "Girls and tinies! Welcome to your new home! You'll all be staying here for the next couple of weeks! At least, the girls will. The tiny ones have a little more to worry about! Girls! Whoever wins the most games will be our winner! Tinies! Your goals are to simply survive until the end of the show! If you make it'll the way to the end you'll also be winners! Now get a good nights rest because tomorrow we will be starting our first game! For the first game, the viewers at home will be voting for which tiny they want to participate! It will be a 1v1 and the tiny with the most votes will be going up against a randomly selected girl. Good luck everyone!"
"Holy shit. What does this mean? Are....we in danger?" Allison says.
"The text says we just have to make it to the end of the show to win. So does that mean the only way to lose is to die? What the fuck!" John says.
"That can't be it. There's no way they'd let us all die on a TV show!" Cole says.
"You're right. Let's just figure out where we're gonna sleep so we can be ready for whatever happens tomorrow." Aaron says.
The group and the girls talk amongst themselves, discussing sleeping arrangements.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The camera pans back outside the house.
"Looks like some of the little ones are figuring out what's really going on! What do you mean the episode was boring! We have to have a set up episode before things really get started! I need to stop arguing with myself. Anyway! You heard the text folks! Vote for the tiny you want to see in our first game! I should let you all know that the tiny chosen will have a very low chance of winning the game! So vote for your favorite! Or least favorite I suppose if you don't want to see their face on your TV anymore! Anything could happen! Who will the tiny be going up against? You'll have to wait until the next episode to find out! What's that? You still don't fully understand what's going on yet? Let's pretend that was our plan all along and it's for the sake of surprise! Just tune in to the next episode of Diminished! Right here on a typical network cable channel! Assuming they don't pull or funding before then. Anyway folks, see ya next time!.
The episode ends. Credits roll. The husband turns off the TV.
"That was uhhhh, weird."
"Yeah it's certainly..... unique I guess?"
"Do you want to watch the next episode when it comes on?"
"You know what? Sure, I've got nothing better to do.'