"Tell me, what would you like as a birthday present? Anything you desire, and I'll make sure you receive it." Elsa said to Olivia apologetically. She wanted to show how much she loves Olivia. Olivia took advantage of this opportunity.

"Put me and Carl in the expedition team" Olivia asked directly with a challenging face, leaving Elsa wordless again.

"No!" Elsa shouted.

"Ma'am, there won't be anyone else volunteering from our sector, I'm sure. Think about your first responsibility. I'll take care of her. Don't worry. Please!" Carl begged her. Elsa gave a heavy breath and started to run through her mind. She was in a battle between her head and heart. She knew how important this was to humanity, on the other hand, it was her only kid. After a few minutes, she looked at them hopelessly.

"I'll allow you only if there are no volunteers in this sector," She finally said with the bitter taste of defeat and hurt stuck in her heart. Olivia looked at Carl with a smile on her face. Two love birds didn't care about Elsa's worried look at all. Elsa was hoping that there would be another volunteer for sure.

"I'm sure there won't be any," Olivia said in a firm voice, secretly amused about her victory against Mom and they both started walking toward the door. Maybe Elsa has hurt Olivia in the past but does that mean Olivia should do the same? Oh gosh, why do people have to be so complicated? Carl didn't forget to look at Elsa with a worried look. She nodded her head to say "leave".

"Were you about to go on an expedition without me, Carl?" Olivia whispered in a funny tone as she closed the door.

"I was about to ask the same thing, Liv. I saw you walking towards the room and I guessed," he replied with a smile, looking into Olivia's blue joyful eyes and touching her blonde hair which he liked the most. Olivia smiled back running her hand through his brown hair.

"Mind reader" she chuckled blushing. Carl rolled his eyes smiling in the sweet way that Olivia loved.

It was the lunch break of Octagon Veranda, but chancellors were busy talking to the volunteers gathered in the main mission control unit. There were seven young adults in the room. All the chancellors were waiting for someone to come. Suddenly the door was open and Chancellor Bell entered.

"Did you find someone?" Jupiter Terko asked in a hurry But Bell nodded disapointedly saying no. Madam Jessy rubbed her eyes frustrated while Elsa gave out a heavy breath.

"Soldiers are required to sail the ship," Jupiter said, highlighting the urgency of the situation. Bell's eyes darted around the room before landing on a young girl in a black coat from the chemical sector.

"Wait, Miss Snow, you?" Bell asked, his voice laced with concern.

"Do you know her?" Jessy asked curiously. Bell looked at Jupiter in anger.

"I think we agreed not to send teenagers. She is still 18."Bell yelled.

"I agreed to do it because no one else volunteered. I'll be turning 19 next week. I'm not a child. I'm 18+ So, it doesn't matter at all," the young girl replied to Bell, with no doubt in her blue eyes. Bell looked at her worriedly and asked,

"Is your brother aware of this, Melvin?" Melvin was at a loss for words as she stared at Bell. Before she could reply, they heard the sound of the door, which meant someone was requesting permission for entry. Bell went to answer it, and Melvin could tell who it was without any doubt. As Bell opened the door, a tall 21-year-old boy with familiar brown eyes stood before him.

"Mr. Snow, I think I know why you're here. I suggest you reconsider," Bell said before the boy could speak a word, in a voice of begging more than a command. The boy looked at the Bell's face and then looked at the people inside the room over Bell's shoulder.

"Can you remove my sister from the team?" Boy asked in a begging voice. Bell looked at him worried.

"No Kal, I wish I could, she has to decide herself," Bell replied worriedly looking at his adopted son, whom he adored the most. Bell prayed to the gods whom he got frustrated over a few years ago ."Why does it have to be my kid" He kept complaining.

"Then I need to talk to her, she's still 18 and she's under my custody. No one under 20 can join this type of journey without permission from a family member." Kalvin replied looking at the girl in the room who was already frowning at him. Jupiter once looked at the girl and then looked back at Kalvin. It looks like he has got another terrible idea.

"Kalvin, I understand that your sister is under your custody and you're concerned about her safety," Jupiter said with a reassuring tone.

"However, I believe that this expedition team is the perfect opportunity for you and your sister to bond while contributing to a noble cause. As a soldier, I know you are up for the challenge, and your skills will be invaluable to the team. You are the best student of your batch as I remember. I'm confident that you and your sister will come back stronger than ever." Bell's eyes started to burn from anger at the offer, and he fretted. It was so clear Jupiter was trying to get his adopted son to sign up for a dangerous mission. Kalvin looked at Jupiter with a hint of hesitation, he knew that Bell was worried and he was aware of the risks involved

"I know this is a difficult decision, but I'm here to support you both, no matter what you choose," Jupiter added, sensing the tension in the room. Bell wished with all his heart that Kalvin would not join his sister on this journey but he knew that Kalvin would do anything for his little sister as well. After a moment of hope and tension, Kalvin opened his mouth.

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"I need to speak with her one-on-one; the sooner, the better. Can you help me with that?"

"Of course," Jupiter said and turned to Melvin.

"I don't want to talk to him," Melvin replied, her tone filled with anger.

"Unfortunately, you are still under his custody," Bell interjected, creating a space for them to converse. Feeling as though she had no other option, Melvin stormed out of the room and went to her brother. As soon as the door shut, Kalvin turned to his sister with a fiery expression.

"What made you think I would let you do this?" he asked, staring at his sister's face as she braced herself for an argument.

"I don't need to consider how you feel. It's my life, my choice," Melvin replied firmly, causing her brother to become even more worried.

"I promised Mom that I wouldn't let anything bad happen to you," he responded, gazing at his sister's beautiful face, which looked so much like their dead mother's.

"Before you got our father killed I guess" Melvin shot at his weak point.

"Quiet! Even walls have ears. Do you want me dead?" Kalvin asked as he grabbed his sister's hand walking away with her.

"I'm not a murder like you" she replied as she pulled her arm away from his touch, making it clear that his help was not welcomed.

"He was a drunken fool, a criminal" Kalvin whispered for his own relief of mind. Then looked at her again worried.

"You know clearly he never cared about us, you are alive because of me and our mom. Also, I'm not responsible for his crimes. It was his own stupidity that got him killed. He tried to start a riot" Kalvin said in a low voice as no one else could hear them, almost whispering.

"Yeah he never cared, but at least we will not have to be orphans if he was alive, then no one would've called me an orphan!" she yelled leaving him speechless.

"Hey shhh.." he said looking around to make sure no one was around. Then, looked at Melvin complaining.

"You don't have to be loud" Then looked at the way Melvin crossed her arms questioning his feelings and decisions.

"We sat for the entry exam because we wanted to get rid of the orphanage, I agree it was a hell and I've apologized like 1000 times for that. On the other hand, if none of it happened, you would've never been such an intelligent scientist. Youngest scientist to be the batch top!" He said gently trying to change her mind about the dangerous expedition.

"Does it change the fact you got him killed and everything else you did?" she asked again trying to hurt his feelings.

"Listen, I didn't know he was keeping all that stupid data about the council's decision to send people to Asia in that pen drive. He never cared for people. He just wanted money to drink more. If he never did those stupid things with Madam Penny's husband, well, he'll still be alive then and you better be quiet about this or we both will be dead" Kalvin whispered with warning signs on his face.

"If you never watched that video, he would still be alive, also you would never have to be a murderer! What would Bell do if he knew what you did?" Melvin asked threatening him. She saw the way his facial expressions changed.

"Are you threatening me? Ok, go tell him. You can watch me getting tortured. It'll give you a great satisfaction to hear me scream." He said angrily but his face was still pale. Melvin looked at him worried.

"You know I'll never do that," she whispered sincerely looking at him worried. But it didn't calm down Kalvin. She opened up the old wounds in his heart, knowing how hard he tried to survive his dark past. She brought it up knowing how her brother suffered from nightmares of his history. Kalvin looked at Melvin almost burning inside. Why does she have to make this stupid mistake all the time? Is it giving her satisfaction to see me being haunted?

"Dad died because of me? Ok, I'll take it. I'm glad he died because I still dream of him whipping me with that belt for stealing money to buy you food. I never loved him. But I loved Mom and she died because of you! Giving birth to you made her weak. That's why she died. That's the only person who loved me on the earth and my life was ruined because you were born! I will be so happy to get rid of you but I've given my word to Mom." Kalvin said in anger leaving Melvin speechless and frustrated. Kalvin clearly saw tears forming in her eyes, although he didn't know whether it was anger or sadness that caused them. At that moment, his heart sank as he saw two colossal teardrops on the brink of spilling from her eyes. The thought of his words causing her such pain made him realize the gravity of what he just said.

"You'll get your peace when I die in Bermuda," Melvin yelled and ran to the door wiping her eyes with her palm. Kalvin hurried to apologize.

"I'm sorry Em, I didn't mean it. Please I can't lose you too. You better kill me instead." But it couldn't stop Melvin. She knew how much her brother loved her, she knew how many sacrifices he had made for her even under the condition that she hated him for one terrible mistake he made. But anger is a terrible god that leads you to unfair decisions and endless sorrow at the end. She opened the door and disappeared into the room. Kalvin punched the wall, which left his hand aching the same as his heart. But the pain in his hand was nothing compared to the pain in his heart. He could remember clearly the moment his mother passed away. It was two years after Melvin's birth. Giving birth to Melvin made her weak, also she was so tired of running away from her drunken husband. One day she fell unconscious on the floor which made five year old boy call to the hospital. A few hours later she passed away after taking a promise from Kalvin to take care of his little sister, leaving him with tears, sorrow and answerless questions to deal with. He gave out another heavy breath, wiped his eyes and went to the door. He knew what was left to do. Just another sacrifice for his stubborn sister.

Chancellor Bell was worried but wasn't surprised to see him back at the door.

"I want to be in the team, sir," Kalvin said the words that Bell was scared to hear from him at that moment. Bell nodded giving out a heavy breath as he let him enter the room.

"I hope you understand what you just chose," Bell said as calmly as possible to hide frustration in his heart.

"I know" Kalvin whispered softly. He was scared to look at Bell. He didn't want to see frustration and sorrow in his teacher's eyes. After everything Bell did for him now he chooses to die over a stupid useless spacecraft? After all the fatherly love, caring and teachings about life now he chooses to die throwing away his family but choosing his crazy sister who never cared enough for living just because she was bullied?

"So we are ready for the expedition." Jessy Terko said with a smile looking at Elsa and Bell. She never liked these two chancellors, so seeing them hurt gave her satisfaction.

"Time is running out, and we need to make every second count. With only one day left, we must start practising immediately. As a person who has more experience with expeditions, Chancellor Bostic has recommended swimming and diving training before you leave for the mission tomorrow. Our success in this expedition depends on our preparation. So, let's begin by buying the things we need. I'm here to guide you every step of the way, so follow me!" said Madam Kirstein in a funny tone to ease any tension.

"Wait we leave tomorrow?" Kalvin asked in wonder.

"We have no time to wait. As a soldier you know the sooner you start an investigation, the more clues you can collect." Jupiter said leaving every young adult in wonder.