𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐖𝐈𝐍 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐗 ✓

14: MACHINERY SÉANCE

"... Each of us stood in a queue, humans, and machines, and they had a soul too."

...

The prayer of the feeblest saint who lives in the Spirit and keeps right with God is a terror to Satan. The very powers of darkness are paralyzed by prayer; no spiritualistic séance can succeed in the presence of a humble, praying saint. No wonder, Satan tries to keep our minds fussy in active work until we cannot think in prayer.

- Oswald Chambers

...

Jaden paced back and forth, his worry growing with each step. His professor stood by a table, carefully preparing a syringe. They were in a dimly lit laboratory, filled with all sorts of equipment and mysterious substances.

The injection would fulfil the crucial purpose, rather a few hours for some set-up.

"Professor, are you sure? We are overdosing him." Jaden was worried about the whole scenario, his professor was a lunatic and could do anything if that helped him real his goal. He had been working with him for years, but sometimes his professor's methods seemed questionable, even dangerous. This time, it felt different.

"What if he dies?"

"Relax buddy, he won't die this soon, not after all these years. Plus, this isn't the first time we are foraging him off these medicines."
With a flick of his wrist, Professor Kim prepared the injection. The liquid, a peculiar shade of blue, swirled inside the syringe. Jaden's eyes widened as he watched the professor approach the man. He couldn't shake off the nagging feeling that this was a reckless move.

A total of sixty seconds and the formula was now punched beneath his epidermis. The man's body jerked for a moment, a gasp escaping his lips. Jaden held his breath, his heart pounding in his chest. The room fell into a tense silence as they waited for the effects to take hold.

It had taken Professor Kim years of research and experimentation to develop this transformation formula. The artificial intelligence he had created was meant to bring about change, true change in society. With the formula injected into the man's body, they hoped to witness a remarkable transformation, both physically and mentally.

"It is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today," Professor Kim said, breaking the silence. "No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be."

Jaden couldn't help but wonder if this was ethical, if playing with nature in such a way was truly beneficial. The artificial intelligence that had influenced their research had created a simulation, a false world that blurred the lines between reality and deception.

Eyeing the man keenly, Professor Kim sat by his side.

"You know why I did this?" he asked, his voice filled with both a sense of responsibility and determination.

Jaden looked up, passing the question to his junior. He barely denied in a head nod.

"Do you know why you support me?"

"I do sir."

He was assimilated into a group after he lost his parents as a youngster, and he was taken into life's most rigorous intimacy. He was not conned. He knew, he always did. Picking up a boy from the streets to feting him with life, his professor did all for him. Jaden doesn't remember much of his life before he met his professor. A small boy of four who barely understood what loss meant was now without any love or shed.