CHAPTER ONE
“Seven species of humans used to roam the face of Earth millions of years ago. Scientists are doing their utmost to fathom how these species suddenly evanesced, leaving just a few archaeological remnants behind. Some say it was because of a virulent virus. Some say they couldn’t survive the harsh climate. But the most recurrent occurrence in their extinction is that their downfall started when they made contact with us, homo sapiens, i.e., the modern human. Homo Neanderthals were larger than us, Homo Denisovans were smarter than us, but still, we the Homo Sapiens prevailed. and no one can comprehend the impetus behind it.”
Reading this paragraph, I started contemplating different aspects of this theory. It was the only thing I was good at. To unravel the mysteries and shed light on the truth. The abyss of oblivion fascinated me. I was addicted to eradicating the layers of mysteries under which the truth was stashed. Denser and mind-boggling the mystery, more congenial it was for me.
Kids my age usually couldn’t synchronize with my nature. I was never able to make friends, and honestly, I preferred it that way. This attitude got me different titles like sadist, ignorant, rude, introvert, etc. For other kids, it would have been abominable, but God had granted me the superpower of not giving a damn.
Nothing excited, saddened or angered me. Except for the pain, I couldn’t feel anything. When everyone else was crying at my father’s funeral, I didn’t shed a tear. When a robber took our family hostage, my heart was beating smoothly while everyone else was trembling with fear. I didn’t cry during heartbreaks. I wasn’t disappointed by failures. I wasn’t delighted with the success. Sometimes it felt like there was a beating stone inside my chest instead of a heart.
Everything was so easy for me. I aced at every domain I stepped in. I topped at studies, had a lavish lifestyle. I attained every exultation this world had to offer, that too at a young age, but nothing could cure the emptiness inside me. I was so much plunged in my work that I disregarded everything else. To me, love, relationships, and friends were nothing more than an intrusion.
Even the emotions of happiness and sadness didn’t make sense to me. What does it mean to be happy? The most unostentatious definition of happiness would be lack of sadness. So in order to truly be happy, you will have to be proportionately sad. Your happiness can’t outrun your sadness. So at the end of the day, what we feel doesn’t matter. I felt like a minuscule grain of nothingness in a vast universe surrounded by morons regarding themselves as the center of the universe.
The only thing I did care about was my job. I was a private detective and a damn good one. I solved many high-profile murders and found many high-end stolen valuables. This was the only shred of excitement that cured my emptiness for some instances. After I had solved my case, all of the thrill running in my blood would suddenly dissipate and I would be left with emptiness again. It wasn’t the excitement I was seeking. I yearned for absolute delirium. I wanted something to shatter my formulaic life and thrust me into all-out anarchy. But I never thought that such extreme fantasies would actually become my reality one day.
One day, I was approached for a job that was slightly different from the usual ones. My client was the CEO of a robotic manufacturing company and wanted me to spy on his competitor. It was illegal, and I usually don’t accept such jobs, but I couldn’t resist the temptation.
I got kinda bored by doing the usual jobs, so I resolved to explore what was stored for me on the other side of the law.
Any morals or laws didn’t bind me. I just did what I wanted to do. Everyone cleped it egocentrism, but deep down, they longed to have the guts to face the world my way.
So on that fateful night, I reached bonanza robotics. This was the company I was supposed to break into. My client provided me with a detailed map of the building, and I planned to enter the building as a young Harvard graduate looking for a job. I had my fake credentials ready and went in with full confidence.
“I am supposed to meet Mr. Jack of the HR department.” I addressed the attendant respectfully. She was intimidated when she saw a man in a blue blazer with dark black hair and a well-trimmed beard glaring at her. I had amended my appearance with fake hair and beard to deceive the security cameras even if they managed to capture my face.
After signing some papers, she told me to head to the 5th floor. Instead of going through the elevator, I took the stairs and reached the first floor. Nothing was out of the ordinary there, so I took a few photos with my spy cam embedded on my wristwatch and moved to the second floor. This floor had some tight security and you needed a card for entrance.
Luckily, someone from the staff was leaving, and I picked the card from his pocket so swiftly that he didn’t even have the slightest notion. In my line of business, you had to learn a trick or two in order to thrive.
When I set foot in that restricted area, it was like I stepped into some newfangled, state-of-the-art plaza. Some guys with plastic helmets on their faces were welding a steel structure that appeared to be a car frame on one corner. A few steps later, I was in front of another chamber where an artificial arm was being assessed. The arm appeared to be made up of silver and was attached with sleek strings that, in turn, were embedded in a disabled man’s elbow who was most probably an army veteran. Everyone had their lab coats and masks on. It appeared as I stepped into an ICU of cyborgs.
Propitiously, there were also some men in black suits roving around, so I didn’t appear out of place that much.
I was awestruck, but I didn’t forget to take pictures through the hidden camera embedded in my wristwatch. I was wandering from desk to desk when one of the security staff suspected me and started following me. I discerned his surmise and started strolling towards the restroom.
No matter how much I tried to blend in, I was bound to raise suspicion. You couldn’t just walk in and leave from the top-secret research laboratory of a leading tech company with no question asked. There were definitely consequences. And I was cognizant of this fact from the very start. Still, I entered the wolf’s den, putting myself at the maximum risk just for a few minutes of adrenaline rush. And frankly, this was a price I was ready to pay again and again.
It was almost 6 PM, the end of the working day, and everyone was leaving for their homes. I was alone in the restroom. As I thought, the security personnel entered the washroom following me.
“Sir! I need to ask you some questions.” He uttered in a heavy tone.
“Yeah! shoot.” I replied casually.
“Would you mind telling me which department you are from? I don’t think I have seen you on these floors before?” He inquired while extending his hand to look at the card that I plucked a little while ago.
I knew that soon my cover was going to blow, so I briskly punched him in the forehead and knocked him out. I wasn’t a nonpareil fighter in any sense, but years of training and expertise have taught me how to knock someone out. If somehow I had missed that punch, the outcome would have been different.
