by Francis Tint
“I’m so absent-minded. Thank you, Blake. See you back in the lab.”
“Are you ok, Blake?” asked Tylor.
Blake did not reply. She bit her lower lip and pointed at the spilled salt on the table. Although subtle, it’s as clear as a death omen. They gasped in unison at the eerie symbol: the elongated rhombus.
“I thought we just agreed we’re over this pseudoscience episode,” Tylor said.
“I wanted it to be over too,” Blake protested.
“Then why are we overreacting to some spilled salt? We’re probably just seeing what we want to see.”
“It’s more than that.”
She had seen more than just the tremor. When she had grabbed the eyeglasses, incoherent images had also flashed before her eyes. One moment she was sitting down. Another moment she was looking down at the party from a bird’s eye view. She kept seeing a man with scruffy facial hair, but she couldn’t really get a clear look at the man’s face. He could be anyone, but Blake knew he must be the infamous activator. The man with many names.
“What do you mean by it’s more than that?” he asked again.
“I can’t really explain it. I don’t know what to think. But if anything happens to Rachael, and we could’ve done something about it…”
“I guess it’s better to be safe than sorry,” Julia concurred with Blake. “Worst thing that could happen is that we look totally weird and paranoid. Image completely tarnished.”
“But what can we do? Where do we start?” Tylor inquired. “How do we even test out our theories?”
“We still have parts of the ring left,” Julia answered.
“Ok. We saw the ring fragment explode under the UV light,” Blake recalled. “Our current thinking is that the ring is atomically unstable, and the additional energy further destabilizes the molecular structure, causing it to blow up.”
“So we need to find something to stabilize the energy level,” Julia suggested, “sort of cooling it down.”
“I have an idea,” Blake said. “A few months ago, we were working on this cryogenic bacterial strain. We tried extracting the protein that cools down their surroundings. It’s supposed to be more effective for controlling hot flashes. But we had difficulty cultivating a batch large enough to run animal trials.”
“We only need a small amount. It’s worth a shot,” Tylor said.
Blake took out her old project from the lab freezer. She donned her lab coat. It instantly reminded her of her passion and excitement with lab work. She pulled out her lab notebook and replicated the procedure to extract the protein with ease. Holding the test tube of deep blue solution in her hand, she smiled with satisfaction, completely pleased with the result.
“Here we go again,” Julia announced, passing heavy-duty lab-grade protective eyewear to her friends. “Let there be UV light.”
They watched as the ring fragment glowed with increasing intensity. “All yours, Blake,” Tylor prompted her.
With great precision, Blake dropped a small amount of the deep blue solution on the ring fragment in the explosion chamber and resealed the space. After a while, the glow started to diminish.
“Looks like it’s working,” Julia applauded. They took off their ridiculous-looking eyeglasses. “You go, girl!”
“I think this should work,” Blake spoke with great relief and gave Julia a hug. They had succeeded. They had fought off the great evil.
“Guys…” Tylor warned, “We spoke too soon.”
It’s cooling down all right. But it just kept cooling down. Frost started to spread around the ring fragment, growing rhombic ice crystals to all corners of the explosion chamber.
“Quick,” Tylor directed at Julia. “Turn up the heat!”
She cranked up the dial but nothing happened. The cold wave continued to spread. “It’s not working. It just keeps getting colder and colder.”
“We need to stop the cryogenic protein.” Blake thought back to her years of biotech training. “Acid. A strong acid to denature the protein. That should stop it. Get me some sulfuric acid.”
“This has to work,” Julia warned. “Once you break open the seal, the cold will spread outside the explosion chamber.”
Blake nodded with determination. Wearing a pair of mittens, Tylor quickly unsealed the frosty whirlwind. “Now!”
Whoosh! Gusts of bitingly cold air pushed out the chamber against the trio like a polar vortex. The ice quickly stretched across the lab countertop. Some of the glassware got so cold that it shattered.
Blake negotiated the winds and poured the acid over the shard. Tylor forcefully resealed the chamber.
The trio looked intently at the chamber. The wind gradually stopped. The spread was controlled. Disaster was averted.
“Well, we can’t say we didn’t try,” Julia concluded as she looked around. “I guess this is what it looks like when the wrath of the ice queen falls on the lab”.
“Ok. What’s Plan B, guys?” asked Julia, scraping the last piece of ice off the lab counter.
“Maybe,” Tylor brainstormed, “maybe we need to approach this from a different angle. If we can’t cool down the molecular bond, we probably need to strengthen it.”
“Bonds are just electromagnetic attractions between atoms,” explained Blake. “How would we supercharge them?”
“There’s a new type of nanochemical I’ve been experimenting with. It can change the spin state of the electrons around the atom, making each atom a super micromagnet.”
“Sounds promising,” said Julia. “But so did the last one. Any major precautions in case things go royally awry?”
“I can think of a few.” Tylor left to grab his sample of lustrous silver chemicals, and pulled in a few enormous devices on wheels.
“Take two, kids.” Julia prepared another fragment and put it under the UV light. As the glow intensified, she signaled Tylor to do his trick.
Tylor dusted some of the chemicals over the fragment like a chef seasoning their steak. The glow immediately subsided. The group waited with bated breath, anticipating for some disaster to befall.
“Hmm… this may actually work,” Tylor reached over to open the explosion chamber. Thud! A sharp scalpel flew across the room and landed just beside his hand. The trio turned around. All metallic objects in the room started to tremble.
“Oh, no…” Julia sighed. “Not again.”
They quickly became the target of all sharp items in the room. It’s either a stab right through a vital organ, or deaths by a thousand cuts.
“Get away from the chamber,” yelled Blake. “Take cover.”
Tylor dashed across the room in his long strides, narrowly dodging a few sharp blades, and arrived at the gigantic electric current generator. He turned the device on and the room was instantly demagnetized. “Thank god I came prepared.”
“Ok,” said Blake, as she gathered the lethal weapons around the lab, “should we think of a third plan?”
“We are only making it worse,” Tylor whined. “Anything we apply gets frantically magnified.”
“That’s because we aren’t addressing the source of the problem,” Julia explained. “We need to revert the material back to normal. Not make it more abnormal.”
“That makes sense,” Blake agreed. “We need to revert the isotopic makeup.”
“How? With nanorobots?” Tylor asked almost sarcastically. “Do you happen to have a couple just lying around?”
“No,” Julia answered. “But I can start working on them. Hopefully this time we won’t turn this lab into a superhero movie fight scene.”
Blake sat in a café waiting anxiously. It was a few hours before Rachael’s birthday party at the bar. Better safe than sorry, she thought to herself. His theories were extremely preposterous, but she’s grasping at straws. If the worst were to happen, maybe Corey had some special tricks up his sleeve that could save the day.
Corey arrived at the table. “Hey, you sounded urgent on the phone. What’s going on?” His deep magnetiz
ing voice reverberated across the coffee table. This was the first time they met in a more relaxed setting. The killer look was replaced with a gentle, caring expression.
“It’s Rachael,” Blake sipped on her double-shot latte. “We saw the signature. We think something’s going to happen to her.”
“Tell me everything. Where did you folks see the sign?”
“It’s the salt shaker. I dropped Rachael’s glasses and spilled some salt. That’s where we saw the omen.”
He picked up his cup and took a sip of his espresso. His bare arm glistened under the sunlight seeping through the window. “When you picked up the glasses, what else did you see?”
How did he know? She opened her mouth and considered for a moment. It’s ok to tell him the truth, she thought to herself. She felt as if she could trust him with everything. “I also saw… a tremor when I grabbed the glasses.” She immediately regretted saying it. “I must sound so crazy.”
“No, you don’t,” Corey reassured her. “When I was very young, I knew a girl who had the exact same ability. Her blue eyes would glow, and she could see things that were…” He trailed off, searching for the right word. “…that were different, like the ring. She would be around your age now.”
“What happened to her?”
“I don’t know. I lost contact with her when I entered the foster system.”
The statement took her by surprise. That would mean he had been orphaned at a young age. “I’m so sorry to hear that. I couldn’t imagine anyone losing their parents when they’re young.”
“My mom vanished when I was ten. But I’m sure she’s not gone.” He took a breath before continuing, “She was a university professor. A few years ago, I started following her work, and it led me to all this.” He took another sip of his beverage. “There’s been countless deaths. Whoever’s behind this must be super powerful to cover it all up.”
“You don’t think Rachael’s going to die, right?”
“We will stop it, whatever it takes,” he looked sternly into her eyes. “Tell me. Did you see anything else when you grabbed the glasses?”
She recollected the scattered images. Nothing made sense to her. Could they really stop it? Is Rachael really going to die? “I kept seeing this man with scruffy facial hair at tonight’s party. But I didn’t see how he’s going to activate her.”
“We need to stop this man.”
Rachael put on some colored hair extensions under her bob cut. She couldn’t believe how fast time had gone by. In a year or so, she would graduate from school, and she would need to become more responsible, as her parents had kept reminding her. This was one of the last nights she could really enjoy her youth.
She arrived at the bar Julia had recommended. The bar featured a nautical theme, furnished with decorative ropes, nets and anchors. “Oh my god! You guys are already here,” Rachael exclaimed. “Hey, Ty, what are you doing behind the bar?”
“Oh, we thought it’d be nice for us to make you drinks. Did you know Tylor used to bartend when he was in college?” explained Julia.
“Wow. A man full of surprises.”
“You should join Blake over there. We’ll be right behind you with the drinks. And the handsome boy sitting beside Blake, that’s Corey.”
“Ooh… the Corey? This is getting juicy.” Rachael departed to join her party.
“Tell me again,” Tylor asked, “why aren’t we adding your solution to her drinks right away?”
“When I tested the nanorobots on the ring before I shined the UV light on it, they destroyed the ring, utterly. They were too strong. But after the UV light activated the ring, the balance was just right. The nanorobot did its magic and the ring became ordinary again. Ugh… I can’t believe I’m saying a ring is ordinary.”
“And you sure what you prepared is safe for human consumption?”
“After fifteen dead guinea pigs as offerings to the lab god, yes, it should be safe.”
“I hope it absolutely never comes to that. Our best shot is to stop her from being activated.”
“Agreed, and that’s why you’re bartending tonight. Hurry up! I think our guest’s getting thirsty.”
It had been a few years since Tylor had made mixed drinks, but his techniques were not at all rusty. Julia watched as Tylor effortlessly shook and strained the ingredients, layering them in fancy-looking concoctions. He placed the drinks neatly on a tray and brought them over to his friends.
“Wow, this is delicious,” Rachael said delightfully after finishing the multicolor shot. “Why did you stop bartending?”
“It’s hard with the late nights, weekends,” Tylor answered. “You don’t get a life.”
“Ooh… I always thought bartenders live so glamorously. Crazy parties. Great tips.”
“It’s really mostly dead nights and poor tippers.”
“Hi there,” a waiter approached the table with a tray of flaming pink shots. “Someone over at that table got these for you boys and girls. Enjoy.”
Blake quickly turned to the table, searching for scruffy facial hair. As it turned out, that’s not a very distinctive description. By that standard, over half of the men in the bar would be suspects. She gave Corey a shrug.
“Did you make those?” Julia whispered to Tylor.
“No. We need to stop her from drinking it,” he said under his breath. In response, Julia quickly drank her shot.
“Oh, we’re not going to toast?” Rachael pleaded.
“These are awful,” Julia said with a face of disgust. “Don’t pollute your taste buds with these.” Julia quickly grabbed the shots from everyone and replaced them on the waiter’s tray. “Please be so kind and thank those very nice people over there. But we have a vegan on this table. Super restrictive.”
“Oh, in that case, may I introduce you to our vegan selection?” asked the waiter.
“We need like pure vegan, next-level natural-organic selection. And that’s why, our buddy Tylor here needs to make all the drinks for this table. Bye,” Julia said dismissively.
“Let me make you something more special, birthday girl,” Tylor promised.
Tylor returned with a glowing platter of drinks, decorated with dry-ice smoke effects and succulent fruits, immersed with intoxicating scents of sweet cherries. “Let me introduce you to proper gastronomy, consisting of aroma, texture, and flavor.” The group gasped at his wonderful showmanship.
“This is very impressive,” applauded Blake.
“So much better than the gimmicky flame,” Julia said, “which really just burns out the alcohol.”
“Good job, bro,” Corey said. Tylor did not respond.
Rachael greedily grabbed a spoonful of litchis and a giant cup of cocktail with tantalizing colors. “I’m telling you, man, you’ll make a killing in mixology. But I guess, if you really like forensics, your job is cool too.”
“I guess... I like... what I’m doing... just fine,” he replied ambiguously, stammering out his words.
As if on cue, other interns from Ashlae Edwards arrived at the table, chanting “Happy Birthday” and carrying a creamy chocolate cake with twenty candles. Rachael covered her mouth in shock.
Tylor shot a glance at Julia. Neither of them expected the surprise. They had coordinated with the bar, but not with the interns. “How are we going to pull the vegan trick here?” he muttered to Julia.
This time, she had something else in mind. She slyly grabbed an ice cube from the drink platter and tossed it on the ground right before the cake bearer. “Sorry, this is going to hurt.” Without fail, the intern fell forward, faceplanting on the baked sweet. The scene looked slightly comedic.
A redhead intern helped the cake bearer up and walked her to the washroom, while everyone else looked a little dumbfounded at the whole situation. A plump boy jumped in trying to ease the awkwardness, “How about we get right to the gift?”, and presented a box of chocolate.
Julia nudged Tylor to take action. What’s with all these surprise edible items!? They
needed to control absolutely everything introduced to Rachael’s system.
Clack! He kicked the leg of the table, shaking the cocktail platter and knocking down a tall glass. The beverage spilled all over the gift and completely ruined the chocolate. The party could not have become more awkward. Rachael was showing a markedly confused expression, half amused and half disappointed.
“Maybe tonight’s a drinks night, not a sweets night,” Julia announced. “I assume all your friends here are of legal drinking age. We don’t need fancy cake or candy. Booze will do the trick. Just give your orders to our boy, Tylor, here.”
“Oh yeah,” Rachael agreed, “he makes the best drinks. Get cleaned up and grab a seat.” Thankfully, Rachael was easily pleased.
“You owe me a huge favor, lady,” Tylor whispered to Julia. “Huge.”
“I have such an awesome night, gang,” Rachael said in an inebriated tone. All the other interns had already departed, leaving Rachael with the ones trying to ensure her safety. “You,” she pointed aimlessly at Tylor, “are the number-one bartender. And have I told you how much I love your new hairdo? It goes really well with your tall figure.”
“Thank you,” replied Tylor in a brotherly tone. “I’m glad you had fun. It’s getting quite late. We probably should head out.”
“Oh my,” Rachael checked the time on her phone. “Let me freshen up and then we can get going.” She headed to the restroom.
“Finally,” Tylor sighed, “it’s all over. Those interns can really drink.”
“You’re really good at this. I can see your concoctions at a high-end luxury bar,” commended Julia approvingly.
“Hey, ready to go?” Rachael returned, with a half-emptied glass in her hand.
“Where did you get that?” Corey asked starkly.
“Oh this? The barkeep gave it to me. It’s just water with some mint leaves. He says it helps with recovering from the booze. It’s super refreshing. Do you want some?”
Blake turned her head toward the closing bar. Many of the workers were cleaning up the station and packing up unused garnishes. She caught a quick glimpse at a man with scruffy facial hair trying to sneak away through the back door. She was sure of it. He was the man she had seen in her vision.
