Science fiction. The deepest emotion

 

Science fiction. The deepest emotion

She was loathed, despised, and often treated as a tramp. She was pretty, she was beautiful, she was smart, she was witty; and it was her bad luck that she was all this, packaged into one person. Because she lived in a society where being a woman meant just two things: either you are a woman or you are a beautiful and just a pretty woman. 

The rest of her qualities were unnecessary and not solicited by the existing social temperament. At least that is how it was.

I knew this beautiful and intelligent woman, and it has been my greatest source of inspiration and joy as well. Overall, I would not shy away from saying that knowing her and being with her has been my greatest achievement so far.

So, who was she? What was so special about her? And why did people detest her so much? I shall employ no means of expediency in order to present to you her true story, a story where she is the heroine, and to many she happens to be the most obnoxious villain.

Sounds like a puzzle where life is seeking the safest path out and when life attempts to rid itself from these puzzling turns, bends and twists, it reaches the centre of the puzzle where every bend leads to another turn and every turn twists to bring it back to the bend where she had started. And this was exactly the case with our heroine of the story who happens to be the villain as well.  No matter how hard she tried to find good in others, they always tried to find the bad in her. And that is where the true predicament of her life lies. 

She was born to parents who were not economically poor, but were poor at parenting because they had to divide their parental attention among their 8 children. And in 2075, having so many children is like a pauper owning an elephant, who believes he can feed the elephant from the kitchen garden that is not bigger than 80 square feet.

But somehow, they managed to raise all their 8 children, by working hard and some planning. And our heroine happened to be the 6th child. So she was older to 5 and younger to 2. That was a relief in a way because there were only two to boss her and sometimes bully her as well. So this part of her life had been taken care of by her fate.

It was in her 17th year that she decided to work at a supermarket and support herself and not be a burden on her parents. She was doing very well and she was getting used to this new world. And whenever she had some free time she would think about her future and about all her dreams. Usual and very casual imaginations of a 17 year old girl. 

But like I said, her life was like a puzzle with many bends, turns and twists; and her life was about to take a very sharp turn and lead her into a situation that would define the rest of her life and impact her deeply in many ways. Especially at an emotional level.

It was a cold December evening, she had just closed her counter at the supermarket and deposited her receipts of daily transactions. She was standing at the corner of the pavement that overlooked the main street that she used to cross every day in order to reach the main road and then walk homewards.

This was her daily routine and it was so today as well. She crossed the street, walked towards the main road, and while she was walking, someone called her from behind. She stopped, turned around and was greeted by someone whom she did not seem to know very well. He appeared to be someone whom she knew casually, maybe based on her couple of interactions with him. It was just my guess.  Because her eyes stared at him with inquisitiveness bearing a strong hint of strangeness, and this was very much unlike her. And it suggested the person she was looking at and the person who was peering at her, was a stranger, but not a complete stranger to her. 

And I could have been wrong with my guess, because I have been following her regularly after she decided to work at the supermarket.

They had a brief conversation that did not last more than a few minutes, and the stranger began walking with her. They did not talk as they were walking on the edge of the road, and the stranger seemed to follow her.

I, who lived next to her home, was always a bit protective about her, and that is why I have been following her after she was employed at the supermarket.

As she was walking she took a turn that did not lead to her home, and then both of them began walking briskly. Like two squirrels who had found a pile of nuts near a tree trunk and they wanted to secure it before someone else did.

Then she took a left turn and both of them entered an old building. It looked like a heritage site. Because it was very old. But it exuded architectural brilliance that was too perfect to be missed. I somehow managed to untangle my mind from this visual attraction and I quietly followed them further.

She must have crossed 3 rooms, when she placed her hand in her sling leather bag that she always carried with her, and retrieved a key. She used it to unlock the 4th room.

Both of them got in and I followed them into the room. Now, I had to activate my invisible mode ( more about my invisible mode later ) and there in the room she shuffled through many books and then extracted a book titled : The space and its secrets.

She hurriedly turned the pages and stopped on one of the pages. She placed her hand on it and then handed over the book to the stranger and asked him to read it. He read it with a lot of attention; and when he was done, he asked if there was anything special about it. Because he had not come across anything interesting in it.

She looked at him and asked him with slight sternness, “Were you not able to notice anything?”

The stranger tightly held his lips and then pouted them a bit; and answered, “No! I did not find anything special in it. Nothing at all.”

“Oh, I see!”

Replied our heroine.

“In that case, I should explain it to you. If I have your permission, may I?”

The girl had barely completed her sentence when the stranger replied, “Yes, of course please do. Without any delay!”

And the girl began explaining her observations,

“You see, based on this book, gravity flows in our galaxy with varying concentrations and there are few planets that lie in loosely bound gravitational zones, and these planets tend to drift. Although they do not drift with noticeable velocities, but they do drift.

And, via my small telescope that I had purchased a few years ago. I have been able to find 6 planets, that after 5 years will enter a region where they will come close to huge stars, and once their gravities lock them in; these planets will stabilise in these gravitational zones.

So far, nothing special.

But now this will surprise you. 

Once they are locked in these high intensity gravitational zones, they will become habitable planets, because they will be at a safe distance from these stars. Far enough not to freeze and near enough to be warm planets that can support life.

If I show you where these planets lie and what is the shortest route to reach them, given our current space travel technology, you will have to offer my family enough resources so that they can lead their lives happily. And I would like to travel with the crew of the spaceships that will be bound for these planets traveling towards these stars. And I would want to be paid handsomely for this discovery. Needless to mention that I would want to be officially recognised for this discovery. 

What do you say?”

The stranger looked at her. Like a deer that had suddenly come face to face with a fully grown and hungry lioness. He was unable to express his response, he tried to, but he was still unable to deal with the fact that someone had found so many habitable planets, and that too a female. He was one of those stereotype space evangelists, who believes it is strictly a male only domain. So he was dealing with many feelings and trying to overcome his old fashioned beliefs.

But he had to answer her and he finally did, “Regarding your family, they will be offered all conveniences.  You traveling with our spaceships, that is agreed as well, you will be paid handsomely as well. So much that you will never have to work again. You shall lead a life of a zarina.

However there is a condition that you will have to agree with.

This discovery will be credited to me or we can share the credit for this discovery mutually. Whatever suits you. I feel sharing the credit mutually will be a better idea.

If this is acceptable to you, we have a deal.”

I felt this stranger was a mean person and everything about him appeared so scandalous now. Infact too scandalous!

The girl was innocent, and like I said, she was beautiful and very intelligent as well, and all these virtues were her greatest enemy right now. And you shall soon know how and why.

She thought for a few moments, and she began dealing with the travesties of his offer. Because now she too had realised that she was dealing with a shrewd person. She certainly did not want to share the credit of her discovery with anyone. Because she had devoted so much time to it. And it was not her fault that destiny had chosen her for this great discovery.

Under the given circumstances she had no other option, because she did not know anyone who could help her. Someone she could trust. There was nobody at all.

Although, she did not mind sharing the credit of her discovery with the stranger, she was not sure if the stranger would live upto his promise. And being a powerful and well connected man, he could bring her a lot of harm.

However, I believe when destiny chooses someone for some mission, it offers that person all the means that would help him/her achieve it. And take its complete credit too or share its credit with a deserving and an honest person.

She kept silent for many moments. And when she chose to speak, the man listened intently, “I will think about your offer for a week and we can meet here on coming Saturday. I shall let you know my final response then.”

The stranger looked at her with a suppressed smile, it was as if a flower bud had just bloomed, and the moment it blossomed it was invaded by winter frost. 

It was that sort of smile.

The girl stayed in the room, and the stranger left.

After an hour, the girl locked the gate and she left too.

The following 2 days were eventless, and nothing special took place. On the 3rd day, something special happened, and this shall explain why the girl was a heroine with the reputation of a villain. 

The major news papers had this headline on their front pages:

The primary company associated with the space guild has decided to bar all premature and unqualified space explorations performed by Women. And that none of their discoveries shall be validated unless they are first examined and then approved by the qualified space guild member/s.  

I was shocked to read this headline and the girl was heart broken. I felt she was, because that day she walked to the supermarket with a bent back, with a drooping look, with a forlorn concentrated look, and she wore the cloak of hopelessness and complete obsolescence all over her. 

I felt very sad for her, I felt hurt that she was being punished for being beautiful and intelligent too. And I did not know what to do.

So far nobody knew that our family had come in contact with an alien community and they had offered me and my youngest sister some amazing superhuman-like abilities. But, I could not risk my life and that of my family by helping the girl by using my super natural powers.

I was caught in an emotional fix and a mental fix as well. I did not know what to do.

That evening the girl went back to the same old building and spent some time with her books. I kept looking at her wearing my mask of invisibility. I felt I should reveal myself to her and console her a bit. But I could not do so, I just could not break the covenant of secrecy.

So I managed to overcome my emotions and I waited for the girl to lock the room and walk back to her home. Which she did.

Now it was Saturday and the girl left the supermarket 15 minutes earlier. She waited for the stranger, and he was there at 6:15 pm. Without saying anything, he faced the girl and waited for her to express her final decision.

The girl stood there silent and still thinking. As if the long and dark nights were not enough, as if all these week days were not enough, that she needed a few extra moments to think again. Just to be sure. To be sure that she will get what she deserves.

Then, finally I heard something.

“I read the newspaper headline and according to it, now I will have to share the credit of my discovery with you. 

I believe our kind will take 200 years to locate a habitable planet. If I do not disclose my discovery to anybody, it will be a loss that cannot be filled by any means.

Therefore, it will be in the best interest of our race and our planet that I share the credit of the discovery mutually with you.”

The stranger smiled, his frostbitten flower had finally experienced the warmth of the sunshine and it was beginning to show its true expressions of malice hiding smile.

“Perfect! I knew you would make the right decision. Come and meet me at the office tomorrow, at 03:00 pm sharp.  And share the details of your discovery with me, and then we will process other details.”

The stranger left and the girl agreed to meet him tomorrow at the proposed time.

Next day, I followed her to the office of the stranger. There she accessed her system and identified the planets and the shortest paths that would lead to them. She also shared others details e.g. the stars that would lock them in their gravity.

The stranger asked her to wait for him and he left to meet a few of his team members.

When he returned he asked her to sign a paper that had these lines printed on it:

“I, Miss. Afquela, have not made the discovery of these planets, and I am not entitled to be recognised for this discovery. It is the discovery indigenously made by Tracks and Stars LLC and Mr. Haneeas has absolute claim and legal rights over this discovery!”

Afquela, looked at it in complete surprise. But like I said earlier, she was beautiful, intelligent and since she was chosen by the divinity itself. She had wit and enough boldness as well. And she surprised Mr. Haneeas.

“I had a hunch that you would trick me into something like this. That is why I shared the wrong details with you. If you try this map it leads into the event horizon of the main black hole that lies in this galaxy. Now if you want to go there, you are most welcome.

As far as I am concerned Mr. Haneeas. I shall be content knowing that I had got it in me, and I made the discovery. 

But it shall always make me feel sad that chauvinists like you still exist in our world, in 2075. 

But, it is good to know that I know it now!

God bye!”

Mr. Haneeas was furious and he lost his calm and asked her to leave immediately. She left the room and went away. Back to her telescope and the world of limitless stars, few shining, few dying and a few already dead. 

She felt happy with them because they did not cheat like Mr. Haneeas. They were real and so true to their nature. And that is why she found the cosmos a fascinating world. 

If it is unpredictable it does not lie about it, if it is silent it does mask it, if it is cold it does not hide it, if it is filled with life and adventures it invites people like Afquela to find them and seek them with undying passions. And that is what she was doing, seeking it with her telescope that was hardly 3 feet long and a few inches wide. 

I felt and rightly so, that it was the telescope of passions that was more powerful than the billion dollar telescopes owned by Tracks and Stars LLC. Because these expensive and high performance machines lacked passion filled operators. So they failed to create magic that Afquela’s just 3 feet long and a few inches wide telescope could create.

When I looked at the girl that night, she was trying to focus on the stars, on the sky, and she was trying hard. But I knew she wanted to cry, and for whatever reason she did not. She somehow did not let tears dampen her will and be the cause of her austerity when it came to her passions and her belief in herself.

So, she slowly slipped into her bed and I turned around. But that night I did not leave her room. I sat in her chair and kept looking at her, as she kept looking at the stars.

And I wanted to help her. I had to help her, otherwise I would have been untrue to my own self.

In the morning, I met some of my well placed friends, who respected me not because they knew my secret. But they respected me because I had been of some service to them on several occasions.

And we decided to acquire Tracks and Stars LLC.

We met with the main board of directors and we influenced a few of the main decision makers, by offering them prime positions and major stakes in the company if they helped us with the acquisition.

After several meetings, and many arguments, they agreed to sell Tracks and Stars LLC. In the acquisition deal we retained the main decision making authority, with claim to 75% shares. And Mr. Haneeas, was retained as one of the board members as well. But his decision could be overruled by us anytime.

On the 3rd day at office, we published a new headline in all major news papers:

Tracks and Stars LLC has been acquired!

Now, all females, whether premature scientists or qualified scientists. As long as they believe in themselves and their discoveries, they are welcome to share the details with our space exploration panel. After having read and signed the NDA. 

They will receive complete and 100% credit for their discoveries and contributions to science and technology if their discoveries are proven valid.

I somehow knew Afquela would read this headline and she would approach us. And she did approach us on the 3rd day. I made sure I was part of the panel. She read the NDA and signed all other related legal papers, and she highlighted the right planets that were habitable.

After verifying the details, which were 100% accurate. She was given 100% credit for her discoveries. Tomorrow she will be flying to the first planet shortlisted by our experts for this space exploration. 

Her family has been offered everything as was proposed by Afquela.

And tonight she looked at the stars with eyes that were smiling. And when you smile with eyes, I feel even Gods who live so far away, can feel these happy vibrations. And I am happy, I made her smile with eyes.

She may never know who I am actually, what I did for her. But does that matter! Because I will always know I finally saw a girl who smiled with her eyes, and every girl deserves to smile with her eyes. And this shall be my best reward, my moment where even a man smiles with his eyes.

This was my story and my neighbour Afquela’s story, who dreamt about stars, about gods in the stars, about wonders that look at us when we passionately look at the stars, and about being the first girl to own the credit for such a scientifically critical discovery. 

As this story about me and Afquela draws to its end. I am reminded of a science fiction story, where there are two lovers, who too dream about stars, but they dream about saving the humanity from the perils of getting trapped in synthetic feelings and artificial emotions. This exciting scifi novel is titled They Loved in 2075, where there is a girl like Afquela and a boy like me, who falls in love with her. But Afquela is trapped in an emotional condition called “Emotional Sterility” that dominates human species in the future, because they are excessively exposed to artificial emotions.

A result of their interaction with self aware machines. And in the midst of this technological plague, the boy loves her and believes he can make her love him with equal human-like warmth and sensitivity. To know whether he is able to win her heart and feel equally loved by her, you must read the science fiction novel, They Loved in 2075.

Just hold on please. When you are reading this fascinating sci-fi novel, They Loved in 2075. Please think of me and think of Afquela too. Then you too will believe that we have the power to make others smile with their eyes. All it takes is a clear conscience and nothing else! 

But in 2075 this may be the rarest commodity, rarer than the rarest metals we will be mining on other planets.