Aeon Paradox

Chapter One: Gelato

Lena Molokov's hand tapped nervously against the steering wheel of the SUV, steam billowing from hot breath as she waited in the frozen car-park for the right time to move. Why did it have to be her doing this? It was supposed to be Reggie. She was not qualified for this level of field operation and this was out of her league. Of course, the idiot had got himself shot, and she was the only person they had to spare. She could not have refused, even if she wanted to. If they failed here, it was all over. No pressure.

With an impatient huff she leaned forward, peering out the front window towards the old abandoned cathedral that loomed over the parking lot, its once mighty stained glass windows now shattered and broken, the limestone weathered and crumbling beneath layers of graffiti as it towered in front of a backdrop of dusky orange sky. She let out a small, amused laugh. The irony that such an ancient and powerful symbol of religious wealth had in just forty years fallen to abandon and disrepair. And all because of a global energy crisis and the discovery of umbra.

It meant little at first outside the religious realms. Umbra was simply putting a measure and name to the energy that coursed in every living being and existed even in small traces in the inanimate matter of the universe. Most with an ounce of sense could define that energy even on a basic level as the soul or god and of which those great religious empires thrived in making sense of. It broke the mystery and their power plummeted. Where it got dangerous for people like Lena, however, was when that energy was harnessed to generate electricity with no harm to the user or environment. No one could have predicted the inventor overstepping private enterprise and releasing the technology for free to the world. It changed everything.

Suddenly, entire countries with limited access to resources could suddenly access electricity in the palm of their hands and with little impact on the surrounding environment. And like most revolutions in technology, the world evolved swiftly, much like it had in past revolutions. She held no illusion that this history of events was not a result of where she sat now.

They had been trying for years to prevent evil people from using such technologies to abuse people like her. People they now termed as Sensitives. A name used to describe select individuals with higher densities of energy that enabled them to harness and manipulate their own umbra in various and once perceived, supernatural ways. Identified easily with the new technology, many among them were exposed and exploited. Their secrets held for countless generations were no longer underground, her own family among them.

Inadvertently, this patent began a chain of events that exposed hidden communities of sensitives and introduced even more diversity in an already heavily diverse and complicated world. And as expected, there was a divide in the global community between those who believed this was a good thing and others that considered it a great threat.

Lena was in the latter category and for good reason. She had seen firsthand the destruction it had caused when authorities tried to control people who they feared as other and dangerous should they not follow their rules. Lena was here to correct a wrong. One that all of them, her sister, her brothers and countless friends, had tirelessly worked on for years to get to this point. To this particular day.

This was the crunch. The 'could not fail' moment, and they had left her at the helm. What was worse, she wasn't sure she had the gumption to do it. It had not meant to be like this. She was out of her element. Her job was behind a computer with the data. That is where she excelled. To actually be here. To actually be physically in the car. A car that should they not succeed would spell disaster, was overwhelming. This part, unlike the others, could not be undone.

"You got this, Sis. I've seen you decrypt a quantum AI in forty seconds on your phone with your pants around your ankles taking a shit. This is way easier."