"Are you sure this will work? The last test we performed showed very underwhelming results."

"I assure you, after extensive study - both from theoretical outcomes and past test results - I'm quite positive it will succeed."

"It better, or both you and I will have to renumerations with our lives."

Two people stood shoulder to shoulder, staring up at a giant screen, watching as numbers flashed across. Every so often it would cut to an unlabeled pie graph, with each section denoting a particular percentage. The highest was on 35%.

The woman stood straight, with her eyes affixed to the screen, anticipation flashing through them. Her skin softly glowing in the bluish-white light of the screen, while the glasses she wore hid her hazel eyes from her associate next to her. Her black, silken hair fell to her shoulders, pulled back into a single ponytail. She was no beauty, but she wasn't homely, either. Her associate, on the other hand, was something to behold. He was tall and broad-shouldered, with dark brown hair that had blonde highlights. Though he also wore glasses, they did little to hide his dazzling blue eyes. If not for his la coat, one could easily mistake him for some model.

"Let's begin," the woman spoke plainly, turning and making her way to a computer on her right. She began to type away, her thin fingers moving back and forth and she entered her key strokes.

Nodding, the man followed behind only to approach a laptop. After a few quick key strikes of his own, he glanced up at her, waiting patiently with his index finger hovering over one of the keys. Silently, he watched her work away, tapping away at the keys to only glance up at the screen on occasion, pausing for just a short second to make sure there were no errors.

Time ticked by slowly for the two. After what had felt like an eternity, the woman sighed and closed her eyes. Though she hadn't said anything, judging from her posture and her expression, the man surmised that she was relieved.

"It's complete, I take it?" he asked calmly.

"Yes. On my count, initiate."

"3... 2... 1... INITIATE!!"

As she exclaimed, he slammed his finger down on the key, held it for a moment, then released and immediately took a few steps back, staring at the screen of his laptop. The woman turned to look at the screen.

With a slight frown, she took a step forward. Complex equations and number-and-letter combinations began pouring over the screens.

"Let's hope when the time comes, you aren't devoured like your predecessors, Zeta," the woman murmured, turning to her computer and tapping a few buttons. In the next instant a new window appeared, but this one had a timer displayed.

[TIME UNTIL SELF DECTRUCT INITIATED - 00:30 SECONDS]

Alarms started sounding, the building began shaking, but both the man and woman took a seat, as if they had all the time in the world.

"Only the future can save us", the man said, "only the future can-"