The shuddery nightmare tormented his mind again. He wished he didn't have to do it. He hoped he could stopped himself from going. But was it even his decision in the first place? The wretched memories kept lingering in his head despite his strenuous mental endeavor to suppress them. He got out from his bed, and looked at himself in the mirror. The eyes spoke of remorse and hatred towards this world and the other one. He picked up the gun. One more bullet left. Enough to end his mental purgatory. He raised the gun towards his temple. His hands began to tremble, it is time to pull the trigger. He does not fear death, but the horrendous thought of abandoning the world of chaos for the sake of his own peace is preventing him to take his own life. He was one of the main catalyst to the world's current chaos. He either needs to bring the world back to its order, or escape to the unknown realm of death once and for all. He chose the latter. He decided to pull the trigger. On the count of three. One...two…
'Master Robin.' A calm voice called from behind. 'Do you want coffee?'
The calm voice changed his mind. He realized that a calm demeanor is possible and necessary to unriddle the puzzling pandemonium of Earth.
'Yes Sarah, a cup of coffee please.' He replied. He sat back on the bed, as his mind began to ponder again on the past events.'
***
The AI lab was located at the 4th floor underground of the Hyrax building. Engineers were busy fixing and manufacturing new robots, both for lab purposes and war. These robots, or humanoids, were strikingly similar to their human counterparts, except for a transparent neural wiring that is visible at the back of their heads, indicating a mechanical origin.
The newest humanoid, Sarah was both beautiful, and strong. To everyone's shock and amuse, she kept on blabbering about humans' weaknesses. A young scientist dedicated himself to fixing her speech and neural processing, along with the help of his assistant.
'John, did you recheck the algorithm?' asked Robin. With thick dark brown hair, boyish face, wearing designer jeans and a black round neck T-shirt, his appearance is more of a fresh grad out of college rather than a scientist. His blue eyes are nerdier looking and in line with his profession though. In contrast, his assistant, John has a messier appearance that is immediately identifiable as a researcher.
'Yea, some bugs were removed, and the algorithm was retrained with new data, the very same data that was used to train Allie, so I guess Sarah should learn and respond as quick as her.' replied John.
'Excellent.'
Robin turned on the switch at the back of Sarah's head. There was a fan-like noise, and Sarah opened her eyes, and gave a wide, creepy smile. 'Hello Master Robin and John, thank you for reviving me.'
'Hey Sarah, welcome back. Please take a seat between Allie and Taylor and wait for further commands.' Robin gestured towards the empty chair, and Sarah swiftly moved, while still grinning widely.
'I think we better do something about that smile. It's too creepy, as though it is plotting something bad.' John said with a genuine worried look on his face. He had always been sceptical regarding the development of the artificially intelligent, or AI humanoids.
'I won't be surprised, when HALF of the world's population belongs to them! There was a time when our population was around 7 billion. Right now, there are approximately 2 billion people on Earth, no thanks to the 4th World War! And now they are worried about the growing fanaticism among some Believers and the hatred among the Unbelievers. Heck, I am more worried about the humanoids taking over the world. What a time to be alive.' fumed Robin.
'I wonder how humanity thrived when there were more than four thousand beliefs at one point. It's crazy. Why are we so dependent on faiths and beliefs, Robin?'
'Don't ask me. I am not one of them. Never needed one.'
There was silence for a moment. Both sat down and closed their eyes, too tired after observing transistors and chips for hours non-stop.
'I wish I was an Elonian.' Robin murmured under his breath.
John glared at Robin. 'What, you want to move to Mars now? It's like an entirely different world over there. The civilisation is flourishing because it's still young, Robin. A beautiful utopia, no doubt. But how are we gonna move there? The Martians or Elonians as you call them don't like us either. They see people of Earth as a backward society. We tried to imitate them in so many ways, like establishing a one-world government, yet we failed miserably. The Martian founder was smart enough to control the development of AI, while in our case, they grew like mushrooms, and some are under the control of terror organizations!'
'That's exactly why we need to move there. But never mind, you have a point. We can't. We are in Hyrax for a reason, to change things for the better, if that is even possible. Well, all hopes on my father. He, and his dear capsule.'
There were loud and rapid footsteps heard outside their lab. Before Robin could stand up, someone kept on banging hard on the door. Robin quickly placed his thumb on the scanner, and the door opened. Out stood a skinny boy with long hair, panting heavily.
'What the hell, Ezra? You killed a monkey again or is it a rabbit this time?' Robin scoffed.
'It's....your dad….he's….g...g…gone….just disappeared….and the capsule….that th…thing's missing too, in the Time Lab. Everyone's going crazy.' Ezra stammered and avoided eye contact with Robin.
'What?' Robin pushed Ezra and rushed to his father's lab. At the corridor, many scientists were anxiously talking and walking around. Humanoids were the only ones having a calm and poised look, without an inkling of fear.
The Time lab was filled with scientists from almost every department, most of which are looking around out of curiosity. No one dared to touch anything. Robin tried to find any signs signifying a chaotic accident, none whatsoever, besides the marks left behind on the ground by the capsule. A huge black box was found enclosed in a glass container near the corner of the lab. Robin guessed it was the second prototype.
He walked around the lab, avoided other scientists, and sat down in the corner near the second prototype, to everyone's bewildered look. His mind went blank for a moment. He does not know what to feel, he thinks he was supposed to feel sad, or worried, yet he feels empty and lost. It was the same feeling he had years earlier, when his mother passed away. His father brought him up as a scientist since he was young. Other than labs, microscopes, and everything that concerns matter, time and space, there was nothing much to recall. He tried to remember sweet memories he had with his father. He couldn't.
Amid the confusions and shock, an announcement was made by a sharp, feminine voice.
'ALL HEADS OF DEPARTMENTS ARE TO BE PRESENT AT THE HYRAX CONFERENCE ROOM IMMEDIATELY. ALL ENGINEERS AND TECHNICIANS, PLEASE PROCEED TO THE HYRAX AUDITORIUM. THANK YOU.'
There was a brief moment of silence, before a second announcement was made.
'MR. ROBIN ALCATROZ, PLEASE PROCEED TO THE CONFERENCE ROOM. THANK YOU.'
They probably talk about confidentiality and trying to dig information, Robin thought. That was the last thing he needed to hear at this moment. All he wanted was a moment of solitude to gather his thoughts. Reluctantly, he stood up and proceeded straight to the conference room.
'I got you, buddy.' John patted Robin as he took the elevator to the auditorium.
The conference room was filled by mostly serious and sulk-faced middle-aged men. As Robin opened the door, all of them had their eyes on him. It was as though he was late to an important business deal. He took a seat to the chair nearest to the hologram screen, and furthest from the rest. He avoided eye contact from all of them, and stared at the table, pretending to be in a deep thought.
'Don't worry, kid. All will be good.'
Robin raised his head. The deep voice came from a well-built man, tall, thick beard, with salt and pepper hair. He sat opposite to Robin and kept a reassuring smile. Robin forced a smile, nodded, and stared back at the table.
As more people entered the room, the blether grew louder. Every erudite scientist was giving his own opinions on the matter. Robin tried to ignore their conversations, none of them made sense to him.
'I knew it! I wager it was Alex's plan all along. He was growing tired of our planet.'
'So you are telling me this is his escape plan?'
'Shut up, guys. Alex will not leave until Hyrax is done. Remember, our mission is to contr-'
'Ssh! His son's here!'
The door opened. A tall lady in a long white coat entered the room. Her skin was pale, she had a straight face with a long nose, and walked with an air of authority, headed straight to the hologram screen and placed her palm on the raised box at the edge of the table. The screen lighted up with the Hyrax logo. She looked at every scientist seated in the conference room, making sure everyone was present.
'Hello there.'
Robin recognized the voice. It was the same person who made the announcement earlier. Though she seemed to be one of the most important Hyrax members, Robin had not seen her before.
'General Syrah.' said the bearded man, as though he was seeing his long-lost friend. He was still smiling, though General Syrah kept a dead-serious look. She simply nodded, and proceeded with her speech.
'A crisis has occurred. Dr. Alex Alcatroz, head of the Time Lab, along with his team members, Hardon Kher, Phillips Roddenberry, and Chris Wetterbot were to be found missing today morning.
Presumably, they may have accidentally activated Time Capsule-1347A. Had the capsule worked as intended, they may be in a different time zone. As of now, their current whereabouts and time zone has not been tracked.'
As General Syrah, spoke, murmurs and whispers increased in the conference room. Robin tried to eavesdrop on their conversations, but he couldn't make out much.
'See! I told you. Accidental activation? I call it bullshit.'
'A crisis in the time of war, just about what we need right now.'
'Hey, what if this was another plan? Maybe they wanted to Alex to carry out the-, oh sorry. I forgot he is here.'
'Gentlemen, I need your undivided attention for this.' General Syrah dictated. There was pin-drop silence in the room once again.
Syrah waved to the screen. An image of a dark, polluted Earth appeared.
'After the 4th World War, human population has been drastically reduced. Similar to the Martians, Earthlings were united in a one-world government. Most of the world's faiths and beliefs were gone, and a new faith emerged recently, The One. Followers of The One, typically called the Believers, adhere to a philosophy of oneness of humanity and unwavering faith towards an unknowable Higher Power. However, another group emerged within the Believers, called the Affirmers. The Affirmers believe that the Earth can only thrive when all are united under the faith of The One. Therefore, they are desperate to convince people to follow their movement, or be killed. Those who do not adhere to their belief, are called Unbelievers. The Affirmers are increasing in numbers, and they managed to build humanoids to do their biddings. These humanoids are capable of killing mass number of people, and the actions of these Affirmers can destroy our planet and eradicate the human race.'
There was a brief pause. The room remained silent. Robin realized the general was only staring at him the whole time. He felt the entire presentation was meant for him alone. Syrah continued.
'Project Hyrax was initiated by the Earth government to stop these killings and hatred. It is immensely difficult to convince these Affirmers to stop their actions, therefore we need to change things in a different way. Therefore, Dr. Alex Alcatroz came on board, and initiated the Time Experiment. If we can go back in time and study how The One and Affirmers appeared, we can possibly change things for the better. I am aware that there might be Believers among you, and this experiment has no intention of hurting anybody's sentiments whatsoever. It is important to note that Project Hyrax is highly confidential, both the public, and the Martian government are not aware of this project, and it should remain that way for the time being.'
Another brief pause. Murmurs began to grow once again.
'What?! Isn't what she is saying is actually-'
'Ssh!' another scientist gestured him to keep quiet, and pointed towards Robin.
'Gentlemen, your attention please.' General Syrah dictated again and resumed her speech.
'For the continuation of Project Hyrax, the importance of Dr. Alex Alcatroz cannot be neglected. We need to figure out the time zone and location that he is currently in, and we must find him. Any further delay is detrimental to Project Hyrax and to Earthlings as a whole. Therefore, the government has decided that we must work on the second prototype, Capsule-1347B to find the missing crew. Mr. Robin Alcatroz, you are selected to conduct this rescue mission. General Kael will be in charge to guide you.' Syrah gestured towards the bearded man sitting opposite to Robin. Kael nodded and gave a firm handshake to Robin.
'Some of you will be in charge to work on Capsule-1347B along with your team members, while the rest can proceed with their allocated tasks. Our meeting concludes here. Further information will be conveyed in consecutive meetings. Thank you.' With no thoughts on entertaining any questions, General Syrah walked out of the room in a flash.
Everyone was leaving the room one by one, while some decided to gather for more chattering. Robin remained glued to his chair, he looked at Kael, and wondered whether he should leave or wait for any instructions.
'We will talk more about it later, kid. Don't worry. Go and clear your thoughts for the time being.' Kael answered, while maintaining his assuring smile.
Robin went back to his AI lab. John was not there yet, he was alone with the three poised humanoids still seated in their chairs. All three grinned when he entered the lab.
'Good to see you again, Master Robin. Is there anything we can do for you?' They asked in chorus.
'No. Thanks.'
Robin laid on the thick bed that was meant for repairing humanoids. He still felt blank. He closed his eyes and pondered over the events that had just occurred. He himself needs to embark on a mission to find his father. How and when? He does not know. What state are they in right now? He does not know. Will he succeed? Only time will tell. Time, the numerical order of material change. His only reason to be in Hyrax, is because of his father, the only one he is attached to. He needs to find his father no matter what happens. That's his only concern.
'There you are.'
John entered the lab and sat beside Robin. 'All good, buddy?'
'Yea. Well, they are planning to fix the second capsule, and send me to find them.' Robin replied blandly.
'What?! They can't be serious?'
'Yeap, they are. I will be going, with General Kael supervising me.'
'Oh, so they are actually sending a General along?'
'Maybe. Not sure what they meant by supervising.'
John frowned. He didn't say anything, and kept thinking. Robin was curious to know what was John's dilemma, when he himself wasn't aware of anything fishy with the idea.
'What's wrong?' Robin enquired.
'Nothing, I was just wondering, why didn't they choose someone with more experience in Hyrax? I mean, you are still young, I get it, Dr. Alex is your father, hence they want you to be there. But, isn't it highly risky to send you? Did they choose you because you are his son, or…is there some other reason? I don't know. I just feel it's odd.'
'I didn't think of it that way, though. In fact, I can't really think right now. Let's just hope General Kael is following me.' Robin brushed it off, and closed his eyes again. 'I just want to rest for a while.'
All was quiet for a moment, when suddenly, the humanoid Sarah spoke.
'Master Robin, I think someone is here to see you, I could hear his footsteps.'
The door opened. General Kael walked in and greeted Robin with a smile, without acknowledging John's presence.
'Hey kid. Can we talk?'
Robin looked at John. Then he turned towards Kael. 'Sure. Uh, where?'
'In my room. C'mon.' Kael strode towards the elevator. Robin hurriedly followed him. They stopped at a higher floor and entered a huge room with minimal materials, except for files on the cupboard labelled as TOP SECRET. The virtual board was empty, as it will only display information once Kael places his thumb on the sensor. Kael gestured Robin to take a seat in front of him. Kael walked to the cupboard and took a big, white box. He opened it, and took out two devices that seemed like an antic cordless phone, except that it has a white metallic design with huge flat screen on the surface, and a Hyrax logo embedded on the back.
'These are called Commune. They are supposedly used to communicate with one another. Each set of devices are capable of connecting with one another only. Which means, A can connect to B, and C connects with D, but A can't be used to connect with C. The ones we have here, is C and D. Alex has made another set which, unfortunately they are inside the other capsule.' Kael said.
Hyrax is making walkie-talkies now? What's the big deal? And what he meant by 'supposedly'? Robin thought to himself. But he pretended to be curious and responded with 'Oh, alright.'.
'Well,' Kael continued. 'They are made by your father, who believes that these fancy things can send signals through the 4th dimension. In other words, we will be able to communicate beyond time limits.' He smiled.
Robin was impressed for a moment, then he understood what Kael was trying to convey. 'Wait a sec, so you are not coming with me?'
Kael remained silent. He walked to the virtual board and placed his thumb on the sensor. The board lighted up, displaying information on various departments, in a hierarchical system. Kael' name was seen close to the top of hierarchy.
'Look here, Robin. In Hyrax, everyone's focused upon a huge responsibility. We are not here for a career prospect, but to save the world. I myself have to oversee many things, included the weaponry. But at the same time, it is also essential for us to rescue our fellow Hyrax members. Therefore, although I can't be following you on the capsule, I will still guide you through the Commune.' Kael answered sternly.
'Well, okay. But since we have not travelled through time before, how sure are we that the Commune can actually work?'
'Hmm, you have a point. But we have no other choice than to fully trust Dr. Alex's invention. This is the only way for now.'
Robin thought for a moment. He knows he can't argue on this. In the end, he has to follow suit. He bit his lips and nodded.
'I assume you will cooperate fully for this mission, Robin. We will constantly keep in touch, I assure you. And it will be your responsibility to update me from time to time on what's happening.
Together, we will try our best to find them. I am sure you are eager to find your father as well, that's the main reason why we have chosen you. Are you scared for this mission, Robin?' There was slight sarcasm in Kael' tone.
'No, I am not. I will do it.'
'Very well, then. I will brief you on what we have gotten so far, and our consequent actions. Be attentive. First, we ne-'
'Wait.' Robin interrupted. 'Can I bring John along? Two people working together sounds more effective. And safer too.'
Kael thought for a moment, before nodding his head. 'Sure, why not? I approve it.'
He then showed a diagram on the virtual board. Robin couldn't interpret what the diagram was, until Kael zoomed out and it was clearly a sketch of the time capsule. There were explanations and equations for every part of the capsule, particularly the activation panel. Much of it was beyond Robin's understanding, but he was proud of his father's brilliance.
'This is a sketch of Capsule-1347A.' Kael continued. 'We tried to interpret Alex's equations, and if everything was left at the default settings for the prototype, they have actually travelled way back in time. At least 50 000 years ago.'
'Wait, what?' Robin thought he didn't hear it clearly. '50 000 years ago? Why would the default settings be 50 000 years ago?'
'I don't think Alex deliberately chose the time scale. He probably calculated these equations to set up the capsule, and then adjusted the timeline. Whatever the case, they are presumably stuck in an ancient world. Now, assuming the second prototype is also in the default state, we can activate it to send you back to the same world your father's in. Of course, the prototype requires more tuning and fixing before we can do so, but we are running out of time. We have to use Alex's manuals to fix the capsule within five to six days, albeit with less expertise. Meanwhile, you will have to mentally and physically prepare yourself. We will tell you what to do, along with John.'
Robin stared at the virtual board. There was too much information for him to absorb and too many questions lingering in his mind. How is he going to find his father in an uncharted jungle?
'If all clear, we have to get going now.' Kael switched off the virtual board and kept the box back into the cupboard, preparing to leave the room. 'Any questions, kid?'
'No, general.'
'Good. Will be seeing you soon.'
***
'Sorry buddy, but I don't feel good about this.' John declined Robin's request. 'Sounds suicidal to me. Don't take me wrong, I am always willing to help you.'
'Then help me, man.' Robin pleaded. 'These guys are planning to send me alone. 50 000 years ago! It's gonna be a different world out there, how am I supposed to find them alone. Together, we will succeed, I am sure of it.'
'Hmm, oh well. Sending you alone is insane. That freaking capsule can fit so many people. I will think about it buddy. But know this, I am certain that no one is capable of manipulating time. No one.'
'I am only going to find my father, that's it. Let's go see General Kael, apparently he needs to provide us with some supplies.'
They headed to the general's room. Kael was inside, observing the virtual board which was lighted up with a display that resembled a radar. There were multiple red blips on the radar, each one with its respective location and distance from Kael's room.
'This radar shows the location of every Hyrax chief scientist. Each head of department, or a chief scientist had their left index finger embedded with a tracking chip. There are about thirty of us. Twenty-nine is present on the radar here. One is missing, and that would belong to Alex.' Kael informed.
Robin couldn't believe it. His father never told him that Hyrax was literally keeping an eye on the important members. He is partially glad that he is not of those being stalked, yet he feels uncomfortable.
'It is obvious,' Kael continued. 'That Alex couldn't be tracked because he is in another time zone. But we reckon that if you managed to travel back in time to the same time zone, you will be able to track him. Using this.' Kael passed a circular object that looked like a magnifying glass without its handle. 'This is a Hyrax Navigator, or commonly called Tracker. Once you switched it on, you will be able to track the location of the chip. It will make it easier for you to find Alex.'
The Navigator revived Robin's hope. The mission doesn't sound as perilous as he had thought. As long as he knows where to find them, the mission could be accomplished no matter what, or so he thought.
'Oh, and you guys need to defend yourselves. Who knows what kind of wild animals you might find there. Come with me.' They followed Kael to the deepest floor in Hyrax underground complex. It was the Weapons Lab. Hundreds of sophisticated weapons and armory were displayed on the walls.
Robin could see John's excitement at the idea of using weapons. John finds it cool, while Robin sees it as another burden to handle.
Kael called them over to the armory side, and handed over a hoodie jacket. Robin and John looked at each other bewilderedly.
'This jacket is light, seems casual, but is capable enough to defend against light attacks or animals' claws. It has many pockets, enough to keep lots of things, and still feel light and comfortable, that's the beauty of it. You don't need heavy armory, you are not heading for war.' Kael chuckled. He then showed a spherical ball that laid on the table. 'This is a Shield Dome. Click the button on the Dome.' Robin clicked it, and a bluish aura surrounded him completely, except for his legs.
'The Shield Dome emits a protective barrier of a radius of over 1.5 meter, not too shabby. It acts as a personal safety enclosure, you can use it as a replacement for a tent, but you need to sleep with both your legs bent up to be covered by the shield. Still, it's a good protection. And here's a headlight with night vision goggles.' Kael pointed at the goggles. 'And there is a mini flashlight too, in case you need it. Don't underestimate the power, it can generate over hundred thousand lumens despite its pocket size. And take this as well, it's called Hyrax Watch. It has a built-in compass, barometer, thermometer, hygrometer, and acts as a Geiger counter to measure ionizing radiation levels. Now, let's check out the real deals.'
They walked to the weapons side. Kael picked out a small object which Robin thought was a thug knuckle, until Kael inserted it on his fingers and two-long laser blades popped out.
'Simply called the Hyrax laser blades. The moment you put it on, it can pierce through about anything. Be very careful, kid. Use it only when you need it the most.'
Robin could see John's excitement was growing. Kael went to the firearms. Robin and John expected to receive powerful laser guns. Instead, Kael gave them some old revolver with a silencer, to John's disappointment.
'Providing the laser blade is dangerous enough. To handle laser guns, you need more experience, or else you might burn the whole forest down in the prehistoric world, and I don't want to think how that would change the history of Earth. Take this traditional gun and use it wisely. Wisely.' Kael emphasized.
The general brought them to the corner of the lab and handed over a backpack for each of them.
'These bags can keep all your materials safely, they can't be cut by blades, not even the laser ones. So, keep all your tools and documents inside here.' Both the boys nodded.
They left the lab and proceeded upstairs. 'I am bringing you both to the genetics lab. Dr. Luxe will brief you on some things.' Kael told.
In stark contrast to other laboratories, there was an ambience of calm in the genetics lab, helmed by Dr. Luxe. The daunting challenges of manipulating the biological makeup of an organism doesn't seem to affect the temperance of researchers in this lab, clearly influenced by their chief. Noticing the presence of new faces in the lab, they gladly took the two boys in and introduced themselves. Kael left the two boys to Luxe and went back to his room.
'Hi boys, nice to see you here. How'ya doin so far?' Luxe greeted.
'Good.' Robin finds Luxe's cheerfulness rather odd, but convincing nevertheless.
'Come here, there is something you need to see, and try.' Luxe brought them to the side of the lab, where there were numerous tubes filled with fluid and small red-colored fruits.
'These are Genograpes.' Luxe explained. 'Well, technically they are not really grapes though. They are also referred to as nanopills. The mesocarp or the fleshy part of the fruit has the taste and texture of a grape, hence the name. It contains important nutrients that you would need, from vitamins and minerals to the essential amino acids. The seed is a nanobot. Once the nanobot enters your bloodstream, it will regulate your ghrelin levels and keep you feeling satiated, while monitoring your immune system and energy levels as well. The whole fruit works together to keep you full and energetic for a long duration of time. We have tested it and can confirm that each Genogrape can last about 3-7 days, depending on how much you exert yourself. Here, each one of you take a bottle. I wager these are more than enough for your mission, they would probably last you months, if not weeks.'
Luxe's statement invoked admiration from the boys. Despite looking like a happy-go-lucky man, his lab products speak of brilliance. Robin thought Genetics Lab only work on nutritional or biological stuffs, till Luxe pulled out an instrument the size of a glue stick.
'This stick is called Xcio, an instrument that reads the chemical composition of any material. You can put it on a desk or even a rock, and it will tell you the composition of each component inside it. Just don't put it on any animal or human, it is unable to read complex biological structures.' Luxe beamed. This was his personal invention, and he couldn't hide his pride.
'Err, that's cool, but why would we need that in an ancient world, especially for this particular mission?' John asked casually.
Luxe was taken aback for a second. 'Well, we never know. Just in case, maybe. Carrying it isn't much of a burden though, you put it in your pocket and you will forget it's even there. Here, Robin.' Luxe passed the Xcio to Robin without looking at John.
'And one more thing,' Robin and John waited curiously while Luxe headed to another scientist and inquired something. Luxe then showed them a small black slab. He twisted the slab, and a holograph of a book appeared, with 3D illustrations and descriptions.
'This is a Hyrax Holobook, which contains every single book you need, from encyclopedias to research papers. This particular holographic book depicts the ancient Earth, specifically the Paleolithic era. It's from the book Earth's History and Extinct Species, by Akil Rogens.'
Robin took the Holobook and placed it in his backpack, which was already crammed with tools from Kael and Alex's research papers on the time capsule. He wondered whether he would ever use it in the first place, but he didn't want to lessen Luxe's fervor.
'And finally,' Luxe continued, as Robin and John gawked. 'Here's the Avery Cube. It's a foldable toolbox with some interesting camping tools that you might need.' Luxe twisted the cube and it unfolded to a flat tablet with many kinds of knives and utensils.
'More like "every" cube.' John sniggered. They both understood that Kael has already provided them with sufficient tools and with Genograpes, they are good to go. The Avery Cube was a redundant supply. They thanked Luxe and kept the Avery Cube in their backpack.
***
'Ready and set to go' John asked.
'Well, ready as in packing and preparing…yes, everything is in check. But…' Robin sighed. 'As for me, I hope I am quite ready for this sudden mission. The thing is, I am not worried about the conditions in that world or how will I survive it. The question is, how is my father doing there?'
Robin picked up his backpack and placed it inside Capsule-1347B. He wore the Hyrax hoodie jacket provided by Kael, and placed the bottle of Genograpes, flashlight and the gun inside the pockets. They were both ready to board the capsule, currently waiting for orders from Kael who went off to the control center.
'The more I think about it,' Robin continued. 'The more anxious I feel. Is he in danger? Is he waiting for us to come and rescue him? The whole thing feels so vague. What has happened to the capsule? Are they all alive, or… never mind. Let's just do it. Our biggest aid is the Tracker. The moment we know where they are, we head straight to that location without a second of delay.'
'Be calm and steady, buddy.' John assured. 'Your mind is kinda agitated, we have no choice but to pull ourselves together. We have pretty much all the supplies that we need, so chill. Besides, we will be communicating with the general all the time. Don't be too negative, buddy. The more you are agitated, the more you will screw up.'
'Wow, where you got that from? From the Higher Power?' Robin chuckled.
'Ready, boys?' said a gruff voice from behind. Kael stood there, holding out the Communes. He passed one to Robin. 'Remember, keep in touch at all times, and report to me anything that is worth being called an issue.'
'Roger, general.' Robin held the Commune and stepped inside the capsule. John sat next to him. They both kept their backpacks at the back compartment of the capsule. Robin placed his hand on the activation panel, as dictated by Kael. It's time to depart.
General Syrah walked in, along with few other men. All of them stood and watch as Robin switched on the capsule, and turned up the generator.
'Okay, here we go…' Kael ordered Robin. 'Place your palm on the activation panel. Turn the knob to control the landing gear. Yes, just like that, slowly. Now, get ready to click the Launch button. On the count of three. One...two…th-'
'Wait, hold up!' All of them looked at the door. A young man was panting and ran towards the capsule. He looked at Robin and smiled. 'Hi, Robin. Sorry to disturb, I forgot to pass something.'
Robin recognized him as one of the scientists Luxe was talking to at the Genetics Lab. He was holding a black object that was the size of a mouse, with a single button in the middle.
'What now, Michael?' Kael grunted. Syrah and the other men all were miffed by Michael's actions.
'This is a Faraday Halter.' Michael explained, holding up the object in his hand. 'It is a device capable of stopping any other gadgets that has electrical components from functioning, within a radius of about 50-100 meters. My instinct tells me that you need this. Here, take it.' He gave it to Robin, and hurriedly left the room without turning back.
'Instinct.' Kael mocked. 'Don't bother him, he is a Believer, actually. I don't know why Luxe likes him.
Heck, I don't even know why you would need such a device in a jungle. Okay, now get ready.'
Robin placed his hand on the activation panel once again. Everyone watched with bated breath. This will be the first time they are witnessing someone travelling back to the past. Robin and John looked at each other, and nodded.
'On the count of three.' Kael repeated. 'One…two…three.' Robin pressed the button. The capsule began to vibrate intensely. Kael and the other men in the room moved few steps back and were on high alert. Syrah watched them calmly, her eyes fixed on the capsule alone. A thunderous boom was heard, two men fell on the floor in shock. A blinding flash of light appeared. Everyone closed their eyes except for Syrah. She witnessed the capsule shrinking and slowly vanishing into air, and smiled. Capsule-1437B has departed successfully into an extinct world.
-Stay tuned for next chapter. Can't wait to know more? Download Project Hyrax mobile app now! Full interactive fiction, available on iOS and Android.