14 I MAKE. I PHONE.
Rm. 2-306.
The room screamed curiosity. Everywhere, even the corners, were cluttered with replicas, robotic models, and carbon skeletons.
Looking up, the room seemed to take up two floors in height and the windows on the side shone in with glistening light. Hanging from the ceiling, were different models across different occasions, showcasing the technological timeline of different vehicles. And overhead, a model of a bullet train rode on floating tracks, expertly dodging multi-colored model planes.
When Steven entered the room, he felt like he had entered his mom's old workplace.
He remembered how his mom would say: "Don't touch this and that."
And he would reply: "Okay," which meant he'd obey and never touch anything. (Kinda.)
Back at the front of the Rm. 2-306, the teacher introduced himself as Mr. Nyegil. His messy orange bangs almost covered his amber eyes, but his stare still punched through, "I teach 'Intro to Robotics," he followed, his voice heavy and sort of bored. Though tired and drawn downwards, his eyes shone with an impetuous fascination.
"Well, since there's no use for dawdling, our first lesson will start today." Mr. Nyegil droned on. He tapped a sleeping student's desk as an afterthought.
Steven propped his head up and then—
click.
The room shuddered as the floor caved in, and lights beamed into the air, morphing into a 3D presentation. Centered in the model was a delicately-crafted machine, continuously coming apart and joining back together.
"Tell me, what is the first word that comes to mind when you hear 'ROBOTICS'?"
"A lot of work?" Calum suggested.
"Yes," Mr. Nyegil agreed, seemingly missing Calum's point, "Yes, but work is meaningless without direction."
The orange-haired man then went on a peculiar tangent—
Mr. Nyegil's Tangent on Robotics 101 (as interpreted by Student #XX):
Design: CRUCIAL
Compatibility & Materials: Important!
Money: Money = crucial. Money = money. Money-money-money (FLAMING MESS w/o it).
Seriously, no-go w/o money. Start a piggy bank.
Think of individual parts -> whole
Money! Ca-ching!
Design Plan:
Step 1: Find rich people for the $$ (friends, family, billionaires).
Step 2: Take the money (quickly).
Step 3: Design something? (return -> Step 1 if failed).
Mr. Nyegil paused, eyeing a student, who was definitely (not) Steven: "No sleeping."
"This is why engineering is a team effort. So, for this class, most of the projects will be done in teams."
He paused, again: "No sleeping"
The student drooped his head further down.
Mr. Nyegil chuckled... reaching his right hand to cover his eyes. He tilted his head backward, before falling into a deep maniacal laugh. Once his laughter finally stopped, he wheezed and looked forward pointedly:
"Today, I'll be assessing all of your abilities."
The back of the room jumbled open with a "CLINK!", leading to a back room filled with thin headgear aligned on shelves. The students clambered awake, as they rushed to grab one. Meanwhile, Mr. Nyegil scolded a student: "No, I don't care that you already have one, use the school's."
Then, he walked over. Using his fist, the orange-haired teacher gently nudged his knuckles onto Steven's forehead. "Wake up."
The boy's eyes blinked open.
"You've been sleeping the whole time." The man stated. "How's the lab table?"
"Good." Steven yawned and then yawned some more. He rubbed his eyes. "How are you?"
Mr. Nyegil responded he was tired, so Steven advised the teacher to sleep more. Unfortunately, Mr. Nyegil was not amused:
"The administration does not allow me to sleep."
"Oh."
Mr. Nyegil flicked Steven's head, "Get your headgear."
Steven rubbed his forehead, dazed, before stepping off his chair and walking to the back of the room. He looked at the selection and his eyes opened wide. The gadgets shone with novelty: the sheen of sleekness and the gleam of innovation. He tapped them a couple of times with a hammer to see if they would break.
Tap. Tap. THWANG!
They didn't. Steven nodded his head.
(Where'd you get the hammer?)
"From my backpack." Steven answered.
He quickly found a pair that fit him, before going back to his seat.
"Do you guys know how this works?" Steven said while fidgeting with the device. He looked at Mayo and Zero who sat near him.
"You put it on your head." Zero suggested.
"No, I mean-"
"Put your headgear on." Mr. Nyegil announced loudly. He pulled the instructions up on the board.
- - - - - -
Instructions:
First time putting a headgear on?
Step 1: Put on your head.
Step 2: Press the power button.
Enjoy!
- - - - - -
Steven looked at the gear in his hands. Putting on a headset? Sure, why not. He fitted his head inside. For a moment, it was dark, and then with a surge of electricity, his nerves shut down as the system booted.
When he came back to his senses, he was standing in a blank, gray room.
<Dieze, are you here?> he asked.
["Status: OFFLINE. Unavailable to connect." X]
Steven felt his virtual arms moving to the side as he peered across a planning desk. Around him, he noticed three other students.
A voice boomed from the speakers in the ceiling: "The students around you will be your partners. You may choose any project to build from the list. I do not expect much from you, but break a leg, if you want. You have 90 minutes, starting now."
A notification popped up and Steven tapped it. Inside, was a list of projects they could try building, but with no instruction on how to build any of them. A plane… a mech suit… a car… and other perfectly 'reasonable' projects for a ninety-minute lab. He looked at his teammates, expecting them to be as bewildered as he was.
"I'm Steven," he said.
"Aithein," The other boy introduced himself. He had a mysterious gaze about him and his hair was mixed with an enchanting dark haze.
Zero introduced himself and Mayo said, flatly: "My name's MAYO."
AITHEIN: "Mayo? That's your name?"
STEVEN: "Aithein, you can see her?"
Mayo brushed her hair behind her ears and answered Aithein's question, her eyes flashing with a bit of amusement.
Aithein coughed, a bit embarrassed.
"There isn't much time," the dark-haired boy said, his voice tinged with urgency. "Uh… I've only been on Earth for about a year, so there isn't much I can do to help." He looked at Zero and Mayo, seeking understanding.
(Luckily for him, the two of them did not know how to help.)
"Maybe, we can work something out." Steven said. Then to the group, he asked, "Can any of you draw?"
Zero raised his hand.
"That's not really helpful though, is it?" Steven dismissed. "Anyway…"
He looked down at the list and seemed to fall deep in his thoughts. "Alright…"
- - -
Typing… []
[Entry Date: (XX/XX/XXXX)]
Subject: One day later…
| The view shifted to a dimly lit room filled with holographic screens, each showing clips of students engaged in various activities.
"This year's students look… promising," the male staff member said, his voice betraying a hint of optimism.
"Is that what you really think?" the female teacher asked, as she skimmed through the video recordings.
"Okay. There's one. Look at that girl. She built a car. Or… that other student, who built an entire mech suit." The male staff member pointed out.
"That's impressive and all, but the boy belongs to the HUNDRED. I doubt he'll join our division over the martial division or… the weapons division."
"Or magic," the female teacher added, flicking her eyes towards the screen that displayed a young student casting an intricate spell, surrounded by glittering runes. "The mage division has grown quite popular as well, you know. They're attracting many of the brightest minds."
The male staff member slumped back in his chair, defeated. "Yes, yes, the mage division, the martial division, the weapons division. All very glamorous and exciting. Meanwhile, the MECH division is left with those who don't quite fit anywhere else. And it's all because of…"
"Let's not talk about it." The female teacher winced.
The male staff member paused the video on the image of Steven, tinkering away at a small piece of machinery that eventually turned into a rudimentary phone. "This boy has some potential, though. His surname is… dang it. Okay, but we should at least try recruiting him. There's a chance that he'd find our division appealing… right?"
The female teacher squinted at the screen, her eyes narrowing as she studied Steven's work. "A phone, really? That's what he built? Our division is about pushing the boundaries of technology, not recreating what's already been done."
"Yes, but look at how he did it," the male staff member urged, leaning forward and rewinding the video to show Steven's process. "He used what he has, and stuck to the basics. He wasn't trying to impress us. He was trying to create something useful."
The female teacher was silent for a moment before sighing. "I suppose beggars can't be choosers. Our division needs fresh talent."
"Exactly," the male staff member nodded. "Let's give the boy a chance. Let's show him what our division can really do, that it's not just about 'school after school.' Let's show him that research and engineering can be as thrilling as swinging a sword or casting a spell."
The female teacher smiled at his enthusiasm. Yeah right. They were screwed. |
