The 27th Element: Project 863

Syntec

I joined the cursed company when I lost someone very close to me, two weeks before our wedding. Oh, I didn't introduce myself, did I? I am Benjamin Cobalt.

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Jane Amber Thomas was killed in a car crash on the tenth of May, 1985. It was two weeks before our wedding. I loved that woman with my whole heart, and she said the same about me. I was at my flat, setting up a romantic surprise for her when I got the news. I hurried to hospital to see her. She got about, an hour and a half to talk to me and say goodbye. I was devastated.

The only person I could talk to was my sister. We both had a terrible relationship with our parents. They were always controlling, I couldn't stand it. Since I had left home I cut off all contact with them.

I met Jane at university. She was brilliant. Like her name, her eyes were amber as well. She had brown hair and tan for someone who lived in England. I fell for her and thankfully she did the same. We dated for a year or two, and then I proposed. I did have to do a little bit of crime to get the ring.

My parents always talked about how I could give the girl of my dreams the ring of my dreams. When I was a kid, they took me to a jewelers, to pick out, and purchase, a ring. (A strange custom I recognize.) But when our family had the falling-out, I couldn't access the ring. So the night before, I went to my parents house, I found the key, half-buried in the potted plant, and walked right in. My mother had kept the ring in the same place I remembered, her dresser. I found it along with my sister's ring. I took both and gave my sister her ring later on.

I proposed at one of Jane's favorite restaurants. I arranged for our table to be at the back and secluded. Neither of us liked to be stared at. She said yes. I would've given that woman the world.

Once she was gone, I couldn't focus on anything and fell down a depressive spiral. My sister thankfully had a stable job and I had some money save up. This lasted about a year, 1986. I decided that I would leave my home England, and head overseas to America. Perhaps there was more business for me there. I said goodbye to my sister and my flat and left.

America was different, but I was correct, there was more work. I sold the ring to let that go and to give me something to live on. After a year and a half of settling in, getting used to the strange way Americans did things, and looking for work, I found a new bio-tech company. I messaged the number that was displayed after their ads and I was connected with the secretary. They did have a position I could fill and I would have two interviews, one for each founder of the company. Wesley Nathaniel and Nelson Syphus. My first interview would be with Mr. Nathaniel. Apparently, from what I had read, the more pleasant of the two.

I arrived five minuets before I the appointed time, trying not to be late. I sat in the lobby of Syntec. It was like a dream to my curious and scientific side. I could see, through a glass window, a lab equipped with tools and scientific equipment. My name was called and I looked away from the window. Instead of Mr. Nathaniel, I saw his counterpart. Was the appointment not with Nathaniel? Or was my research wrong? Upon seeing my accusatory reaction, he reassured me.

"My friend had something that came up," he smiled at me,"I figured that instead of rescheduling I would fill in for him. I hope this is not a problem?"

"No," I smiled back at him,"Not at all." I followed him down a hallway or two and we eventually came upon what I assumed to be his office. It was lined with dark wood, from the desk to his bookshelves to the great doors that made the office have a sense of privacy. Three long windows made up the back wall of the room. He opened the door for me and I entered. He walked to his desk and I heard the door click behind me. He sat in a dark leather chair and motioned for me to sit down in one of the chairs opposing his. We talked for awhile, and about many things. At the end of the interview, I felt it went well, and we parted in good humor.

It was about two months before I heard back from them, I thought I had been written off. Nathaniel had a new opening and I agreed to meet him then. The interview went about as well as the one with Mr. Syphus the previous time. I learned that I was fighting for the position with one other.

Three months after that, I received a message that I had in fact got the job! The pay was supposed to be well enough and I wasn't bothered with the work I would be doing. After another month of paperwork and legalities, in 1988, I was officially a Syntec employee. I was a bio-chemist and worked on multiple different things. It seemed I was still under surveillance as to where I would work best. I was sort of mentored by a man by the name of Arden Hunter. I soon met a woman who would be called my friend, and an adversary.