My contained laughter let loose and shook my body into relaxation, bringing my attention to sore, smiling cheeks. Flowing tears reminded me that my interest in the Integrator was not futile; months of searching and gathering information was only a precursor.
The coolness of teardrops flowing to my chin passed into my skin and propagated down my neck – encompassing my whole body. It's all I ever wanted—to have my efforts realized. I wiped the tears from my chin and sniffed and rubbed my eyes with the Integrator's cursive in front of me. It was handwritten. Personally handwritten by him. I cried into my elbow.
I felt light; my body felt light; I was lightheaded. Maybe it's a dream. I have upcoming classes in the next month, I had to study, I had to graduate. I pulled away my elbow and held the paper card in front of me again. Two days!
The Explorers Project—the text released into my imagination and drowned me in its call to adventure—trailblazing in a team of six and freely running in joy across foreign fields, discovering an ancient past while navigating rugged terrain, exchanging ideas with teammates to pioneer anything.
Limitless possibilities. So limitless, my head pulsated until I stood from my chair and let my limbs wiggle and dance, not caring for its symbolism. Not that I knew how to dance with elegance anyway.
My phone rings in Ruyo’s name and I immediately answered, placing it to my ear. “Ruyo, you won’t believe what I just received!”
“Seems like my senses were right and you needed some guidance. Now, calm down because you’re muffled when you speak so loudly like that.”
“It's insane! I’ll be personally learning under the disciples and the Integrator!” I told him with contained giddiness.
“Have you been creating a zoo of imaginary people in the last hour since we’ve been apart? Earth to Laizen, Earth to Laizen,” Ruyo said in a feigned worrisome tone.
“Come on – when I’m upset, you tease me. Now I am a hot sun and you feel the need to water me down?” I pouted.
“Becoming a star doesn’t mean people appreciate you—just look at the daily lives of people appreciating the sun. Even though it shines, no one cares.”
I take a few deep breaths. “Fine fine, so you called me?”
“To verify the senses I have so eagerly enhanced throughout my life, yes,” Ruyo said. “I felt the planet increasing in positive energy and decided that you were the culprit. Seems like I was right.”
“You and your perfect timing. Sorry, but I can’t detail anything other than what I’ve said about being their student.” It was difficult not to share more with my best friend. I felt so light I could glide across any body of water or jump out my window and fly to faraway lands. Appreciating the breeze of the air, flying with the birds, seeing the oceans and its surface inhabitants, and breathing in the freshness of an expansive forest.
“So where will you be going?” Ruyo asked.
“No idea, the letter doesn’t say.”
“Ooh a letter? Maybe I wrote it.”
I nearly let out words pertaining to the Explorers Project and used ‘grand’ to describe it, but quickly adjusted my focus. “Nope, not possible. And I know you are sneaking in some funny thoughts regarding doubt, but there is one verification I am waiting for.”
“And what would that be?” Ruyo asked.
As if in perfect timing, my phone vibrated and I checked the caller. It was my dad. “Parents are calling. I don’t know when I will be able to speak to you again, so—”
Ruyo chuckled. “Don’t worry about me, there is an adventure ahead of you. I trust we will meet again—but this time, I will have an arts degree and you will be the Integrator’s student.”
I snorted in response and bid my farewell, then accepted the incoming video call from dad and saw mom sitting next to him in the dim afternoon light. I sat my phone vertically on the square table and exchanged smiles after taking a seat.
“So we heard about the news,” dad said. “Looks like there is a new path in life ahead of you.”
“What did your letter say?” I asked with pointed curiosity.
“It was mostly about how you will be gone but we can remain in contact with each other,” mom replied with a breath of relief. “But we also don’t know how often you will meet us after your departure; it may be less frequent than being a student.”
“Let’s meet each other at a restaurant tomorrow before you go off on your journey,” dad said. “It will be our gift as family—a celebration of the two holidays we missed together, and for all your birthdays in the time you are gone. We didn’t have much time to prepare for this sudden news, so it's the best we got.”
“It’s okay,” I responded. I wondered how long I will be gone for as there was nothing about the duration of my residence.
“Well, that’s about it from our end, son. Have a good night’s rest and we’ll meet tomorrow around noon,” dad said.
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“You okay son?” My dad asked, assessing me as he stood on the sidewalk with a brown jacket.
“Couldn’t sleep much,” I yawned. Dad reached his arm over to my opposite shoulder and squeezed me towards him as we followed mom. She stopped at a green awning attached to a brick building and pointed for us to enter.
Distinct clacking and chiming of ceramics and silverware on a few round tables resounded in the almost empty restaurant. Mom walked to the front desk with a marbled countertop and pillars on both its ends. Screens on the top wall displayed different menu options and thumbnails of colorful dishes, fading or swiping to new images every so often.
The waitress motioned for us to sit on a round table for three near the window and gave our menus. It was almost afternoon and I didn’t sleep much, so I looked for a dish that energized me and did not put me to sleep. If I’m up, then I’ll stay up; I’m spending time with my parents for the whole day and who knows if it’s the last time I’ll see them. After scanning through a menu with copious options, ‘Assorted Veggies & Nut Mix’ appealed to me—consisting of cabbage, corn, carrots, cucumbers, and roasted and salted peanuts and walnuts.
The waitress took our orders and menus soon thereafter and left to alert the kitchen, opening up a conversation on the table.
“You don’t want more food in your lunch?” Mom asked.
“No, I need it to be lightweight so I won’t suddenly sleep during our communion time,” I said. “It should last me the whole day unless I’m working like dad.”
Her growing warm smile beamed to me as the sun did on her, as she hung her white jacket behind and revealed a short-sleeved dress. It was a pale green that almost looked yellow underneath the sun’s rays, with warm-colored petals carefully sewn throughout. Even in the middle of winter, she brought spring with her.
I turned to my dad and his brown jacket and orange shirt. “You don’t look as pretty as mom.”
“Without manure, beauty won’t prosper,” dad responded. I heard mom chuckle and I surrendered to his comment soon after her.
“So out I come, is that what this is about?” My parents looked at each other and laughed. Whether it was for or against me, it mattered no more because this is what I came to experience. The soil, the seed, and the fruit in one continuum.
We discussed more about the letter, and I had to refrain from giving out any details no matter how subtle. More of their excitement leaked through this time, supplemented by the arrival of food to our tables. I had boiled vegetables and salty nuts, my dad had a large plate of millet and greens, and mom had her usual fruit salad.
We exchanged stories about our experiences since the last time we met. I talked about school, dad talked about doing various tasks at farms and running his mechanic shop, and mom talked about teaching children and gardening back at home. By the time our plates were emptied, the conversation finished on my distaste for schoolwork because it was neither challenging nor fun.
“You can always do something else; nothing has to be like a lifelong project or career like us. Just see what the Integrator’s letter was about and tell us about it when you are allowed to,” my mom reassured.
After a brief debate on who would be paying for the meal, my dad insisted on doing some service for them while my mom wanted to pay credits and get it over with. Without any warning, she simply walked up to the front desk and discussed the payment. Knowing her, she was well aware that she would succeed regardless of the circumstances because my dad was too unobtrusive to go into the kitchen and spontaneously start washing the dishes or whatever nonsense he could come up with.
For the rest of the afternoon, we strolled in a park, played some casual ball and frisbee, and enjoyed the winter breeze; savoring each others’ presence. The beginnings of twilight emerged, alluding to separation and departure. We stood beside the floating car that had been a part of my childhood, with a steady indigo light outlining its outer edges in a straight, geometrical pattern. Its design almost resembled a circuit board, much like the ones I had seen in my dad's shop.
“After yesterday's two important holidays, it may be a long while before we meet each other again,” dad said.
“We know this is something you hold dear to your heart, but make sure to give us a call so we can catch up,” mom added.
I nodded and mom stepped forward for a hug. Dad joined and wrapped his arms around both of us in a moment of silence; each of us visibly exhaling in the cold air. They stepped away from me and entered the car's front seats after waving their farewells, and accelerated into the distant road before turning a corner. I stopped to look at the twilit sky transitioning into darkness, then returned my attention to my path home; city nightlights activating along the way.
Tomorrow is the day the officers pick me up and I wouldn’t want to be late. I set an alarm for 06:00 and cozily snuggled in my cold, dry room. It was not often that the temperature would balance just right prior to sleeping. Maybe I was not paying any mind to the previous days, or perhaps the stars aligned for a special day. Immersing my face into the warmth of my pillow, I closed my eyes.
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I rolled around and flopped side to side on my bed with glimpses of an early morning darkness that could be made out through the crevices of the window shades. My eyes were opened and I closed them in an effort to subside their burning sensation. Another day, but no sleep.
I sat and looked at the analog clock on the wall to the side. 05:07.
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The efforts that went into sleeping relaxed and were directed towards preparing myself for the pick up in about two hours. After my cleaning routine, I looked in the kitchen to see if breakfast existed. There were some fresh fruits left, and it would be best not to let it spoil.
I grabbed the pomegranate I received five days ago, sitting on the kitchen counter. I was walking on my way home when a grocer handed me a red ball and said it would go to waste if no one ate it. I voiced that I couldn't possibly eat it since it was at least three times the size of my fist, until she showed me that the red fruit coated its seeds and taught me how to extract its juice. She gave me a sample taste, and it was sweet—a fruit I hadn’t heard of or paid attention to, so why not take it home.
The pomegranate juice took a while to extract, compared to the ease the grocer displayed. Taking out the seeds was simple, but I had no way to tell whether the fruit had detached from the seeds until I put the mixture on a sieve for separation. In addition to two bananas and an apple, I completed an energetic and lightweight breakfast. The extra energy was likely unneeded, but who knows what would happen later today? Certainly not me after the letter of surprise.
One ripe banana remained and it will join my journey with the officers to the Integrator—wherever he was.
05:38. About thirty minutes passed, yet the window displayed only darkness. I could pack things before I left, but I had no container to hold any extra food or clothing other than a backpack. I’ve decided to depart without preparation since the Integrator mentioned it unnecessary to bring anything.
Feeling a bit expressive, the palest options in my wardrobe were appealing—gray pants and a navy blue tee. With a hand, I swept my hair to the side while looking into the mirror, giving my head some volume. That's where the smarts are, so I had to make it more substantial.
06:10. Maybe I should go down early so I don’t miss the officers. I left my apartment in a black winter jacket and black sneakers, remembering to stow the banana and Integrator’s letter in my backpack. Down the crystal-powered elevator and out the front door, a morning breeze further lightened my mood with an enveloping welcome of goosebumps.
The quiet, red-tiled sidewalk stretched long with residential buildings packed next to each other, each with colors of earth and land as to remind me to plant my feet on the ground despite their towering heights. The leafless trees were firmly rooted in their designated patches along the sidewalk, aligning themselves perfectly at the trunk when I positioned myself to view them one behind another.
For another half hour, I waited with visible exhales in the cold air while the sun began to peek over the roof of the residential buildings across the street. Movement was caught in my peripheral and I turned left to see a silent and levitating silver car making its way down the road; stopping a few paces away. It had a low height and its windshield seamlessly connected to the metal in the front in one smooth curve. Compared to other cars, the front was rounded and not angular, giving it aerodynamics that could pierce the air.
Two men stepped out on opposite sides of the levitating vehicle dressed in off-black ceremonial robes with gilded trim. I could make out a white undershirt below their collarbone, overlaid by brown beads that hung over their neck. If my noncomplementary gray pants and black shoes created a bearable sense of unease, their serenely draped robes and slick metal hunk of a car were strangely out of place and bereft me of thoughts on where I was going.
“Laizen Sommer?” One of them asked and I nodded in response. “Welcome. We are here to escort you to the Integrator’s location.”
“Where’s the energy in your welcome?” The other man said with a hoarse voice. “Come, boy! I see you are here much earlier than us. Shows your dedication! Don’t let this man of formalities scare you.”
I looked at the old man with a hoarse voice and turned to the other whose pale skin did not match the vitality of his demeanor. The younger officer opened the door to the back seat and gestured me in without wasted movement, and I watched as he strode around the front, then back into his driver’s seat.
Embedded in the center of the dashboard, a small and white diamond-shaped crystal glowed dimly. The electrical channels running throughout the compartment were glowing the same white, indicating the car was connected to and powered by that jewel. I have been in many cars and never saw a white crystal—only blues and indigos that were quite aesthetic in the night. For its external appearance, the white light may have matched the silver metal in the sun and became inconspicuous to my eye. Its designer must possess keen eyes for design and an aptitude to make lighting effects blend into the metal without sacrificing function and efficiency. With this impressive final product, it must look stunning in the night.
The old man lowered back into his front seat and shut the door, then faced me as the acceleration of the car gently pushed us back.
“Looks like you’ll be with us for a bit. The journey is a ways away compared to the young girl we picked up earlier. Not much of a talker,” the old officer snickered. “Can’t believe the man himself wanted us to pick you all up this early! I broke my schedule again, but meeting younglings like you made it quite worthwhile.”
I gaped my mouth to make an aspirated sound before the young officer interjected with a smiling, yet serious tone. “This old man talks a lot, Laizen. Let me know if you want it to stop.”
The two interchanged glances and smirks before I broke the silence. “‘The man himself’, you’re talking about the Integrator? What’s he like?”
“An unexplainably strange man. He acts no different compared to the rest of us, yet a warm embrace welcomes you anytime you interact with him. He could even break your sanity in the nicest way possible,” the old man chortled.
“This taut young lad here also works under him as I do. I could never imagine such a relinquishment to happen.” The old man slapped his colleague’s shoulder before he was brushed off.
“There was simply a lot I had to learn, that’s all,” the colleague chimed in.
The old man turned his head back to the front and I turned mine to absorb the view through the window. Many buildings rushed past us on a highway, but as we continued, the towering skyscrapers lowered to single-floored rectangular buildings until we reached an empty field in the outskirts of the city. Only then did the vehicle begin to take off into the sky.
I have never heard of or seen a flying car – only levitating ones going about in daily traffic. Recalling information from previous seminars, the city grid was only programmed to help cars levitate. There wasn’t sufficient energy to allow every vehicle to fly, so the consensus was every one of them should at least have levitation; that way no fuel or wheels were needed. Without any moving parts, vehicles were absolutely silent and produced almost no mechanical heat. How engineers managed to discover levitation, I do not know, but this was on a different strata.
“I have only seen levitating cars on the street; how is this one able to fly?” I asked.
“Ah, this is a special vehicle that was built under the direction of the Integrator and is unknown to the public,” the young officer said. “This cannot be mass-produced as he is busy with other projects; primarily with decomposing, recycling, and removing junk from the forests and oceans since the pre-integration era.”
Sky-blue light surrounded the windows and I looked out to see splotches of clouds above us, the sun shining in the east, and vast green fields beneath. As we lifted further, the green fields below combined with the browns of trees, grays of cities, and other colors of harvestable farmland. At the apex of elevation, snow-peaked mountains and oceans were most conspicuous because of their vastness and impressionable presence unmatched by flat and hilled lands.
As more land passed beneath us, the shorelines and beaches were the next attraction. From this height, the waves stretched wide and seemed slow as it hurtled towards the sand, ending in fizzy white colors as they crashed. The breathtaking view distracted me from the silence of the flying car. What would it sound like up here? For a moment, I thought the physics of the world should allow you to hear all sounds the higher you are in the sky. I yearned to experience the totality of the rustling of leaves, crashing of waves, and the exhilarating energy of people on the beach enjoying their day.
Over the oceans, I could see the vast expanse of the planet that stretched endlessly in all directions. The color of blue was more prominent now, and I looked at the entrances and exits of rivers, and the enclosures of lakes that lined and settled within the land. The ripples of water were discernible as the sun shined, which brought my attention to the few conspicuous wildlife that emerged to the surface every so often. Specks of lush green islands stood out from the brilliant blue of the surrounding water, and I could only imagine what resided there.
I returned my eyes to the huge landmass that we were approaching—South America. “So these continents are much smaller, if I recall from my history lessons,” I stated.
“Oh nostalgia; that reminds me of my youth,” the old officer said. “My piloting days were filled with surviving on many islands of various climates. Now the beauties are submerged or flooded and setting a toe in them is impossible. Countries and shores experienced the same decimation when the ice melted off the land and changed the traditional maps. The peak of havoc was during global and simultaneous floods that flushed out farmland and altered the navigation paths of supply ships overnight.”
“Wait, you remember your past?” I asked in astonishment.
Silence descended upon the flying car as my question lingered in the air. The creaking of his chair made the situation more unsettling as he leaned his head back and I waited for his answer. “Of course, why wouldn’t I?” The old man said.
“Adults I have spoken to about the pre-integration era either don’t recall or have fuzzy memories. You are the first one that I’ve encountered who is an exception,” I told him.
“That is strange indeed. I haven’t seen or spoken with anyone in that condition,” he said.
I desired to delve deeper into the matter, but didn’t know what questions to ask. I never anticipated such a situation because I didn’t think it was possible, so I kept it in the back of my mind. This newfound information only compounded my confusion and spawned more questions than answers.
"Anyway, you mentioned navigation, which reminds me – if I may ask – where are you taking me?"
Both officers looked at me and let out a laugh, with the old man responding. “You don’t know where you’re going? The young girl must not have known either and never said a peep!”
“We are heading to Antarctica,” the young officer said.
I looked out the window and saw another large mass of green land revealing itself towards the front end of the car. Behind me, the continent of North America was long gone, and South America would soon follow. It seemed I won’t be meeting any other candidates on this trip, unless there was someone that needed to be picked up in Antarctica. The old man mentioned a young girl, so that meant at least two of us would have arrived by then.
Our vehicle descended into the illuminated grassy field beneath us near the center of the continent. Trees with tiny leaves stood in the distance, albeit few in number compared to the fields from where we departed. Now there was no turning back, especially since I have just one set of clothes and a banana.
Driving past the field, the vehicle then hovered over a dirt clearing, which transitioned into an asphalt road. Structures rose in the horizon as we approached our destination uphill. Before long, we could see at the bottom of the hill what felt like an indigenous town. Drawing closer, I could make out the architecture that consisted of shaped stone, mud, and wood.
I do not know how I would survive in this place because the setting was too simple, barren of wildlife, and devoid of a lurking community. Perhaps morning was on the horizon, and only time will display the town’s residents. The officers and I trusted the Integrator; and from my conversation with them on this trip, they would agree that the Integrator would not act and place me here without reason.
The young officer drove to a halt at a large, gated enclosure and told us to exit for we had arrived. I stepped out with the officers and surveyed the scene. Thick hedges surrounded the perimeter, preventing access from any direction besides the entrance we stopped at.
Looking through the arched gate into the distance, I saw a single-floored building in front that reminded me of the pictures of temples I saw in previous disciples’ lectures. The shrubs blocked a full view of that building even though it was a far walk away on a gravel path. But judging by the height of the tall hedges, the buildings inside could not have been taller than a single floor.
Peering more closely through the gates, the temple's opened double doors stood at the end of the gravel walkway. Squinting, I barely made out a well-lit corridor that led to a more spacious room.
The young officer walked up to me with my forgotten backpack and its hidden banana, which I quickly hoisted over my shoulder. The old man stepped up beside his colleague and looked at me with smiling, bright eyes.
“Well, this is it,” he said in his hoarse voice. “I’ve got to get back to my routine, so enjoy your time with new friends, boy. I’m sure my young colleague here wants to get away from my scratchy, talkative voice too.”
We all shared a moment’s laugh. The young officer bowed and extended a straight and precise arm angled towards the gate. The old man smacked my upper back hard enough that I felt my heart escape my ribs for a moment and stumbled forward onto the gravel path, feeling the round and oblong stones massaging my soles. I turned my head back as the old man lowered into his seat once more, giving a parting wave and a bright grin through the window before the vehicle’s acceleration into disappearance.
I returned my head forward and walked. The closer I came to the temple, the more I appreciated the structure. The patterns and placement of its design seemed intentional that it matched the ambiance of the shrubs, trees, and flora around it. Much like a collection of clouds, my eyes could not settle into one particular detail and it invited me to take on its whole presence instead of just a part.
I wanted to make this my home, but putting my personal desires aside, this felt like home.
I walked through the double doors and into the well-lit corridor of warm browns. This led into the lobby where an expecting lady stood behind a desk. She pointed to the side down a grand hall, where a door resided at the end of its length. I bowed as a thanks, adopting the young officer’s mannerisms.
Turning, I walked down the arched hall that would take about ten average-sized men to reach its height. The lighting was dimmer even with the bright candle flames that lined the two walls, held in place by black discs. The fragrance of well-watered fresh grass and leaves carried into the building and mixed with the scent of candles, creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere.
After an unexpectedly long stroll, the rectangular door intimidated me because of what laid ahead. Who would already be there besides the girl mentioned by the officers? The Integrator? I took a deep breath and pushed the door open.