Doctor Molina gently placed the stylus on top of the spinning record and whistled along to Mussorgsky's Night on the Bald Mountain. With a beaker on hand, he examined the deadly chemical's fluorescent color. Mussorgsky was the perfect music to make the purified ether. He took a glass pipette and extracted a sizable amount of the fluid. It emitted a familiar odor that novices mistook as chewing gum. However, one drop of the chemical alone in its pure concentration is lethal. He placed the beaker in an oven-like centrifuge machine, turned it on, and the inside plate began to jiggle back and forth as it gently mixes the fluid inside.
He flipped through his journal and wrote down the changes he made in the percentage of ether. There were plenty of iterations he recorded from the slightest tweak he made, including its effect on the subject. The music continued its playing in the air, and on occasion, the doctor would close his eyes, paused himself briefly, and stroke his fingers as if he had a baton on hand. And why not. His love for music began when his father bought a record player when he was around five years old and played Mussorgsky's Joshua for Contralto, Bass, and Orchestra. He could see him sit still in his room. His little self just standing there and watching his father listen. But on occasions, his father would close his door, not wanting anyone to disturb him.
Doctor Molina woke up from his slumber when the record player hit a repetitive silent groove. He turned it off and went back to check the centrifuge machine. He removed the beaker and examined its content under an ultraviolet lamp, and he could see a blue fluorescence glow indicating the ether was purified. But the resultant effect is something he still needs to verify.
He continued his work and added the crucial element in his quest for the ultimate drug that can transform humanity from a mere passive observer in the forward movement in the arrow of time to something that can travel backward and beyond. He mixed the bottle of an unknown element to the Purified Ether and gently mixed the solution with a glass stirring rod. After he stirred the solution well, he put on his eye protector and poured the beaker's content inside the capsule generator. The solution glowed when it hit the bottom surface. He then turned it on, and the machine began to grind itself and prepare to convert the liquid substance to a capsulated form.
As he waits for the machine to finish, Doctor Molina heads towards the center of the room to take a much-needed rest. He replaced the vinyl on the turntable and settled on another classical piece, instantly filling the air with music from an orchestra. The room was a big open space, and as he uncovered the curtain, he could see below an even larger expanse the size of a half basketball court used by the military for an experiment fifteen years ago. He could remember the days and the agonizing hours they spent inside those walls recording the event of the top-secret program.
He opened his diary and recalled the name and faces of those that bravely participated in the project. He examined their photos and their individual unique characteristics. Each one of them getting slightly higher dosages of pure Ether with different effects on the subject. Three landed in their destined time and lasted a day, one died in the fall, and another decayed too quickly and returned in time without knowing the event that took place. But that was unprecedented at the moment it was initiated until the side effects came in.
Doctor Molina heard the alarm of the capsule generator. He checked the machine, and its odometer reading showed 100 capsules made in its 15-minute run. The word word 'available' flashed on the inside tray. Doctor Molina placed the capsule inside a dark bottle and some in his pocket. Then he went back to his seat to listen.
In the middle of his musing, a voice suddenly interrupted him.
"I like how you reminisce in the grandiose moment of a classical piece by Borodin."
The doctor jumped up from his seat. "Who are you?"
The voice continued to lurk in the shadow.
"A curious one. By the way, I read your files and everything you got. That includes the men who took part in the Project Blue Shadow."
The doctor saw a dark figure hiding from behind an old electron counting machine.
Confused, "Are you…Reynaldi Lima? What exactly do you want from me?"
The shadow replied, "The truth. And whatever it is in your pocket."
Rey walked toward the light exposing the gun in his hand. He lit a joint and sat on one of the comfortable sofas.
"Project Blue Shadow. That name alone echoes every day whenever I go to sleep. Something in that experiment of yours made me want to know the truth, and I know you have the answer to all my questions."
"That project is doomed the month after it was initiated. The government no longer pursued it."
"Why?"
"Rey...you are lucky to survive. The fluid that was injected has an untoward side effect….the rest of your team died."
"How?"
"Their head exploded. The chemical has a neural affinity, and it causes massive swelling of the brain."
"I guess I have to thank you for giving me a smaller dose of that drug. "
"Rey... Your dose is the same... "Doctor Molina lied on the dose as a necessary distraction.
"I must have an iron brain to resist it." Rey thought, Why did I survive?
Doctor Molina diverted his attention. "How did you discover this place?"
"Consider it my expertise to eavesdrop on suspicious people, especially when they have something to do with my past. It's easy when I follow people around, and that includes you. By the way, I do remember this place. I can recall the pain of the sedative you once gave me and the order to jump off that gate over there. That is one fucking death trap, and I really hate it! "
"I am sorry, Rey. I did not decide on that matter. I am just a scientist!"
Rey Lima lost his temper and fired his gun. Doctor Molina immediately ducked and hit the red button from under the lab table, instantly shutting down all the lights. Rey aimlessly fired his gun, hitting the window and throwing the glass fragments down below. A thick smoke suddenly filled the corners of the room, which sent Rey Lima into panic mode. He climbed out of the shattered window and quickly jumped on the iron scaffold platform. Not far, he saw Doctor Molina looking at him as the building wall opened, revealing the horizon. He heard Doctor Molina mocked him,
"Rey! This thing already happened! This is deja vu! Next time it repeats, make sure that I won't escape!"
Doctor Molina took the pill from his pocket, ran towards the building's edge, and jumped 150 meters below in an otherwise grand escape.
Rey Lima ran after him, but all he could see was the traffic down the street.
"F_ck! "