《Dr. Ekleberg: The Smartest Man Alive》


 Prologue: A Monster Born

    Tom Holland is in his trailer, having finished filming the final scene for the movie in which he stars, "Dr. Ekleberg: The Smartest Man Alive." Unlike previous occasions, Tom realizes that he is not the character he plays and that he has been gaslit once again. This cycle has become typical for him ¨C he agrees to be the movie''s star, and the cast and crew gaslight him into believing he is the character he is portraying. They convince him that what he is doing is not a movie, but real life. After filming, they break the news to him that the movie is fake, and he is Tom Holland, not the character he thought he was playing. Although he always has a mental breakdown, he recovers shortly afterward.


    This time, however, something is different. When Tom believes he is the character he is playing, he begins to acquire the character''s characteristics. As Dr. Ekleberg, is the smartest man alive, his intelligence and IQ grow significantly during filming. Gradually, Tom realizes that he has been gaslit into thinking he is the character and that he is, in reality, Tom Holland. Ironically, gaslighting him into believing he is the smartest man alive has made him just that.


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    As he reflects on his situation, Tom becomes enraged. He realizes that he has been lied to his entire acting career and that he is now much more intelligent than he was before. He thinks out loud, "How could they do this to me?" His anger is not directed solely at the director and crew but at the world. He has always thought that the world was corrupt, but his newfound intelligence and awareness have sparked something inside him. He ponders, "Why not change the world?" and suggests getting revenge on it since he is probably the smartest man alive. With a sinister grin on his face, Tom proclaims, "I''m Dr. Ekleberg... The smartest man." In that instant, a monster is born.

 Cycle Continues

    "Tell me, who are you?" Nathan Drake demanded, his heart racing as he faced a hooded figure in a dimly lit cave deep in the heart of Madagascar. The atmosphere was thick with tension, and Nathan was still sweating from the intense battle he had endured before entering the cave.


    "What is this cosplay? Cut the crap and show yourself!" Nathan raised his gun, his finger on the trigger. "I''m warning you, if you don''t show yourself, I''ll shoot."


    The hooded figure spoke, his voice low and menacing. "You''re telling me you don''t recognize your big bro?" With a flick of his wrist, he pulled back his hood, revealing himself to be a man.


    Nathan lowered his gun, his face dropping in shock and disbelief. "S-Sam?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. "Who else, little bro?" Sam replied with a grin, and Nathan felt a rush of emotion as he realized that the figure in front of him was none other than his long-lost brother, whom he thought had died years ago.


    "I thought you were dead?" Nathan dropped his gun and fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face. Even the hard cave floor could not take his attention away from the person he respected most in the world.


    "Come on, you didn''t think I''d leave my little bro hanging?" Sam offered a helping hand to Nathan, who took it and stood up shakily. "Let''s do the family reunion another time; first, I think I have something that would interest you." With that, he pulled out a map from his sleeve and opened it, revealing a treasure map that was sure to lead them on a thrilling adventure.


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    ¡°Cut!!¡± shouted a man as the walls of the cave began folding down and the rocks were removed by a group of people. Sam walked off set, pulling out a cigarette and a lighter. But it wasn''t Sam who lit up the cigarette, it was none other than talented actor Rudy Pankow, everyone''s favorite D-list celebrity. "What''s happening, brother? What''s going on with the cave? Who are these people?" Nathan looked around, scared and confused as if his world was falling apart, as if reality was breaking.


    "Oh god, can someone deal with Tom? He''s bothering me," Rudy walked away to his trailer, frustrated with Nathan pestering him with questions. "Tom?" Nathan scratched his head in confusion. "Oh shit, don''t worry guys, I got this." A man with long brown hair and a brown blank baseball cap, wearing a long brown coat, walked up to Nathan Drake. "Come to my trailer, uh, Nathan. I''ll tell you everything." The man sighed in frustration, tired after seeming to have a long day. He whispered to himself, "This never gets easier, does it?"


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    Nathan took his gun and followed the man into what seemed to be a trailer. The man hung up his coat and hat on a hanger near the entrance and walked towards a desk and sat on top of it. "Have a seat there, Tom. I don''t want to be in the studio all day." Nathan raised his gun and faced it towards the man. "Listen, I don''t know what game you''re playing, but you better explain yourself." Nathan was filled with rage and anger directed towards the man. "Jesus, Tom, that gun''s not real, you know." Nathan shouted, "The name''s Nathan Drake, and we''ll see about that." He pulled the trigger, but nothing seemed to happen. "What?" He kept pulling the trigger with no effect. "Is it jammed or something?"


    The man groaned and took the gun away from Nathan. "Look, Tom, I''m gonna make this quick. You''re not the  treasure hunter Nathan Drake; you''re the famous English actor Tom Holland." "Wh-what the bloody hell are you on about?" Tom dropped his soft American accent and started speaking in his original British accent. The man placed the gun on the desk. "Me and the crew gaslighted you into thinking you''re Nathan Drake to help filming for the Uncharted sequel. You''re not actually him." Tom looked at the man in confusion and felt the need to prove him wrong. "If I''m not Nathan Drake, then how come I can do this?" Tom moved his hand through his waist and unveiled his knife and started swinging it around. "Take this and that and-" he accidentally cut his leg with the knife. "Ouch, e Wawa. That''s gonna leave a mark."


    The man rubs his head in frustration. ¡°Look, Tom, I''m famous Hollywood director Edward Corneas. We''ve worked together many times before, sort of. I''m the one who recommended you for Spider-Man and have worked with you ever since. We gaslighted you, just like all the other movies we made with you, to convince you that you''re the character you''re playing.¡± Tom freezes, and a flood of memories flash in his head, remembering everything prior to being gaslit into being Nathan Drake. All the experiences he had as Nathan Drake, all the friends he made as Nathan Drake, and all the suffering and hardships he had as Nathan Drake were nothing but a bunch of lies. All of his ¡®friends¡¯ were just paid actors for the movie they were filming with Tom Holland. Tom falls to his knees and starts screaming at the top of his lungs. ¡°AHHHHHHHH!¡± The director gets uncomfortable. ¡°Yikes, this always happens with you, huh? Well, I''ll give you some alone time. I gotta start marketing this thing. I''ll place your check on my desk. Here, be sure to pick it up after whatever you''re going through. Remember Tom this is for your own good, remember that your like a son to me.¡± The director leaves the trailer.


    This wasn''t the first time Tom Holland had been subjected to such a mental breakdown - it was just one of many he had to endure. You see, Tom was part of an advanced method acting experiment, created by the infamous director Edward Corneas, in a quest to discover the perfect actor. Every time Tom was cast for a role, the director and his crew convinced him that he was the character, and after filming, they would reveal that he was gaslit all along to help him method act. This always led to a massive mental breakdown for Tom, but he always managed to recover not long after.


    It was as if Tom was living in a never-ending nightmare, where his reality was constantly manipulated, and he was forced to relive his own fabricated memories. Tom called it¡­ The Cycle.

 Chapter 2: It all starts with a Script

    ¡°What a day," said Director Edward Corneas as he stood outside his trailer, pulling out a cigarette and lighter from his pocket. As he lit his cigarette, he looked on set and saw all of the crew members and staff for the Uncharted sequel removing props and items from the set, making what once seemed like a dark, damp cave now show its true colors as a movie set. Director Corneas blew out puffs of smoke into the air, feeling a sense of peace and comfort as each puff of his cigarette got rid of the stress he had been going through. "This movie is going to make the studio lose a lot of money. Sigh. It''s going to bomb like Chaos Walking. Gaslighting Tom Holland was a bitch for that flick," he said. Edward got rid of the ash from his cigarette and continued to smoke. "Tom Holland as a gaslit actor has been paying. I just need a way to push him further." He looked to his right and saw a man running towards him, seemingly holding some sort of stack of papers. "Eric, do you have the script?" The man holding the script stopped running and took a minute to catch his breath as he heavily panted. "The studio finished writing the script." The Director dropped his cigarette and stomped out of anger. "Didn''t I tell them that I write my scripts? I told them I write the movie, or I don''t make it." The man handed the script over to Edward as he snatched it from his hand.


    Edward put on his reading glasses, which he pulled out of his back pocket, and began to read the title of the script out loud. "Brain. The story about the smartest man alive? Who comes up with this stuff? No one is going to watch this. It''s called Brain, huh? Guess the writer didn''t have one." Edward chuckled at his comment, expecting Eric to join in, but to his disappointment, Eric''s face remained expressionless. "Anyway, I''m not making this crap. Maybe we''ll have Baz Luhrmann produce this piece of shit. I want nothing to do with this flick."


    As Edward was about to give the script back, an idea popped into his mind. "Smartest man alive? How about the smartest actor alive? Those were the questions flowing through Director Edward''s head. If he could convince Tom Holland that he was the smartest man alive, he might be able to convince him to be anything. The Director shared his idea out loud. "What if we got Tom Holland in this? Think about it. If we can convince and trick Tom Holland into thinking he''s the smartest man alive, just think about the possibilities that could open up. For example, we could make him believe he''s a war veteran or make him believe that he''s a god. The possibilities are endless."


    Eric looked at Edward, who appeared to be giggling and jumping in excitement over cracking the code on how he could expand the range of gaslighting he could do to Tom Holland. Edward continued to muse about the idea, lost in thought, while Eric remained quiet, unsure of how to respond to the Director''s proposal. The Director''s twisted plan had taken on a new dimension, and Eric could see the devious look in his eyes as he plotted how to use Tom Holland''s gullibility to his advantage. Eric couldn''t help but feel a sense of dread at what Edward might do next.


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    After the exhausting filming of the Uncharted sequel, Tom Holland''s fragile mental state led him to hail an Uber and head back to his modest three story LA apartment. As he stepped inside, he immediately shed the remnants of his character, removing his vest and knife and carefully hanging them up on the coat hanger including his campus he thought he got from his long lost brother. To his surprise, Zendaya''s coat was already there, indicating her presence.


    However, as Tom moved further into the apartment, he was struck by a disconcerting sound. Amidst the laughter of Zendaya, there was another girl''s voice, teasing and making jokes about her boobs. Tom''s heart sank with fear. Could Zendaya be cheating on him? The mere thought sent shivers down his spine, and he whispered to himself in disbelief. "No, this can''t be happening. It can''t be real," he muttered in his comedic British accent , the words echoing through his anxious mind, intensifying his paranoia about the possibility of Zendaya being Perrywinkled by this mysterious girl.


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    Determined to confirm or dispel his worst fears, Tom sprinted across the narrow hallway of his apartment, his footsteps echoing with each urgent stride. The apartment itself, a modest three story space with artistic designed floors and shiny flashy wallpaper walls, reflected Tom''s humble lifestyle despite his fame. The walls were adorned with a few framed movie posters and photographs, capturing moments from Tom''s career and personal life. A worn-out couch sat against one wall, displaying the signs of frequent use and providing a place for relaxation after long days on set (for Zendaya at least.). The kitchen, though compact, held the essentials for daily living, including a few cooking utensils and a modest pantry stocked with necessities.


    The anticipation and dread consumed Tom''s thoughts as he approached the source of the voices, his hand trembling as he reached for the doorknob. With a deep breath, he turned it slowly, bracing himself for the truth that awaited him on the other side.


    Tom opened the door and quickly covered his eyes, exclaiming, "Gotcha!" With a devious peek, he expected an enticing scene but instead found a grotesque sight ¡­


    a VTuber on a screen.


    ¡°A V-VTUBER?!" Tom exclaimed, his jaw dropping open like a petrified marionette with its strings pulled. Startled by Tom''s outburst, Zendaya turned around in her luxurious pink Hello Kitty themed gaming chair. What Tom had initially mistaken as Zendaya being involved with someone else turned out to be her simply watching the famous VTuber, Iron Mouse, on her pink 50-inch monitor.


    "Uh, am I talking to Tom or Nathan Drake right now?" Zendaya quipped, amused by Tom''s intense reaction despite knowing that Zendaya wasn''t cheating on him. Tom Holland, however, remained uneasy, still not knowing that Zendaya was just engrossed in watching a VTuber. "Timothy, is that you? Why do you look like a girl?" he asked, his mind convinced that Zendaya was somehow involved with Timothee Chalamet, who he imagined as a cute anime vampire VTuber.


    "No, Tom, do you really think Tim and I are dating? I''m just watching IronMouse," Zendaya replied, rubbing her head in frustration. This kind of banter was not uncommon between Tom and Zendaya, as Tom seemed to struggle with differentiating Zendaya''s on-screen relationships from reality. Despite Zendaya''s attempts to explain, Tom remained a stubborn and paranoid wall to her, which she found endearing in its own way.


    "IronMouse is just a VTuber I watch for comfort," Zendaya clarified, hoping to ease Tom''s concerns. However, she couldn''t help but roll her eyes as Tom dismissed the name. "IronMouse might sound silly, but she''s someone I enjoy watching," Zendaya added, emphasizing the significance of finding solace and entertainment in the virtual world.


    With a sigh, Zendaya accepted that this was just one of the quirks of her relationship with Tom. Despite the occasional misunderstandings, she appreciated his protectiveness and acknowledged that he simply cared deeply for her. Resuming her seat in the pink gaming chair, she returned her attention to the VTuber on the screen, finding comfort in the virtual realm that provided an escape from the pressures of their real-life Hollywood existence.


    Tom felt an urge to express his dissatisfaction to Zendaya about her fondness for VTubers, as he found the concept rather bizarre. To him, the idea of hiding one''s identity behind cutesy anime avatars with high-pitched voices that could shatter glass seemed peculiar. "Why do they feel the need to conceal their faces? What are they trying to hide?" Tom pondered aloud, his thoughts swirling in his mind.


    A sudden realization struck Tom. What if these VTubers hid their identities because they were unattractive or hideous in real life? The thought resonated with him, evoking a sense of sympathy towards this hypothetical explanation. Convinced by his own reasoning, Tom decided to exist out Zendaya''s room .


    Unbeknownst to Tom, this realization would mark a turning point in his life, steering him toward unforeseen paths and a unthinkable present.