Written by Wren Marco
Cover Illustration by Dimensiluar

“Of all these weird creatures who lock up their spirits, drill holes in themselves and live for their secrets.”
- Radiohead (Subterannean Homesick Alien)

In the silence of the descending elevator, Research and Development Specialist Dr. Ezra Birch was pondering something that had been on his mind for a quite while. However, the topic had only come to his attention once again after overhearing a passing conversation on his way to this very elevator.

“I hear there are monsters down there...”

It was one of the new company interns who had said this. Despite the certainty in his fear, it was likely that he didn’t know what he was talking about, especially since most interns didn’t get clearance to any of the underground levels of the facility. 

Still, this intern wasn’t entirely wrong to think this way. Rumors always have, always do, and always will exist. And no rumor is completely without truth, especially in a place like Cobalt Laboratories in the year 1950.

Still… the word “monster” stuck out to him. Is that what Ezra’s most notable scientific achievement would be known as?

The elevator finally arrived at its destination, the lowest floor of Cobalt Labs. In addition to being the furthest away from the surface, it was also the smallest floor, consisting of only two rooms, separated by a short hallway. As he stepped out, a loud series of pounding and growling could be heard on the other side of the door to his left. Next to it, a room number and label described the location and purpose of what was contained on the other side:

Maximum Security Experimentation Chamber 1-α: Project Sagittarius

In one universe, this would be the door that Ezra would enter. However, for better or worse, this is not that universe. 

Instead, Ezra turned to his right, towards the only remaining door on this floor (the other side being much quieter in comparison). This room was also numbered and labeled to indicate its location and purpose:

Maximum Security Experimentation Chamber 1-𝛃: Project Capricorn

It is worth noting that only a select few of the most powerful and influential people employed at Cobalt Labs were privy to the highly classified details of these two experimentation chambers. This information has been kept under incredibly strict disclosure protocols by order of Cobalt Labs’ recently appointed CEO, Dr. Eridan Crowe, and his unwavering resolve when it came to a rather black and white way of thinking:

“Fear manifests when a person either knows too much or too little.”

And to a certain extent, he was right. Particularly with regards to Ezra, who reported directly to these powerful, influential people, but was only ever given just enough information on a daily basis to do his job properly and without question.

In the years that followed, Dr. Crowe would eventually conduct a psychological study on this relationship between fear and information. He would later publish his findings collectively within a book titled, “Confidence: A Necessary Limbo for Survival”.

And so, as paranoid interns and cautious executives walked about on the floors above, fearful of whatever it was that lingered in the depths beneath them, Ezra swiped his employee keycard and stepped inside the dimly lit room to begin yet another day's work, blissfully unaware of the tightly choreographed limbo that made his day to day productivity possible in the first place.

…

“Vera, please be careful. I would hope that I don’t need to explain to you once more how critical it is that the alien does NOT regain consciousness.” Ezra spoke through the microphone, which played his voice out into the containment space. This space served as the other half of the experimentation chamber, which was divided in two by a wall consisting of a single doorway and a wide, bulletproof, one sided mirror.

Ezra’s lab assistant, Vera Balance showed no signs of acknowledgement as she continued to stare wide eyed into the incubation chamber, jotting down all kinds of notes on the humanoid creature contained within, practically pressing her nose against the glass as she did so. 

The creature inside looked to be just under seven feet tall and distinctly malnourished, with its rib cage and cheekbones visible (despite getting the maximum doses of daily nutritional fluid). However, its human characteristics stopped there. A pair of long, pointed ears, alongside tattered wings, spiraled horns, the complete absence of any reproductive organs, and a layer of short, brown fur over all but its face made the creature seem just as much a bat or a devil as it did a human.

All this being said, it was still difficult to conclude that this was, without a doubt, an alien from outer space, rather than a human that had gone through some kind of horrific biological experiment. This notion in particular was something that Vera loved to theorize and argue with her mentor about.

“Ugh, you worry too much Dr. Birch! At this point, it would take a miracle to wake the mutant up now. He’s been asleep for over six months after all.” Despite her attitude, she did have a point. Though the creature was discovered and captured on New Year’s Day earlier that year, it had not once awoken from its comatose state, despite the numerous stimulus tests.

Still, Ezra wasn’t the kind to take any unnecessary risks. His main objectives didn’t require waking up the creature, and he preferred it if he didn’t have to do that. Swiftly, he changed the subject, “Vera, wasn’t tonight the night that you wanted to leave work early?”

“Oh my gosh, you’re right! I have a date tonight! And I still have to freshen up too…” Vera scrambled to collect her things, strewn about on desks and in corners of the lab room,  “Yikes, I'll have to telephone him so he knows I’ll be late. We’re going to a drive-in movie tonight!”

The old man wondered for a moment how fun and exciting that must be. After all, he wouldn't know. In the midst of his rigorous career workload, filled with years of research and study, Ezra never found the opportunity to settle down and get married. It wasn’t a subject that Ezra enjoyed discussing with others very much, and knew that if Vera knew the truth, she would only ask more questions and pry him for more information.

Instead, by force of habit, he decided to add a bit more to a white lie that he had been going along with since Vera first started working as his assistant, “Hmm… maybe I should take the misses out for a malt and a night on the town. We haven’t done anything like that in a little while.”

“Awe, I’m sure Donna would love that!” Vera said, none the wiser.

Suddenly, a third voice announced its presence from the laboratory doorway, “Not before you deliver your status report to me I hope?” It was Dr. Crowe. 

Alongside his status as the company’s current CEO, Dr. Crowe was also regarded highly within the company for his efforts in standardizing the observation and experimentation of unidentified life forms. There was no one, not even interns like Vera, who didn’t know of this man’s significance in the world of science.

“Of course, Dr. Crowe. Vera, you’re dismissed.” Ezra obliged and gave a nod to his assistant, who stood off to the side, clinging desperately to her haphazard pile of belongings.

“Yes sir…” she pouted as she walked out of the lab, free to enjoy her youth as she saw fit, but not before sticking her tongue out at an unaware Dr. Crowe.

Ezra could just barely hold in a chuckle as his superior continued, “Dr. Birch, you and I are both very aware that your position on this project is an exceptional opportunity for the both of us, particularly you. After all, as I establish myself in my new role here at Cobalt, ensuring that the next generation of scientists is prepared and able to carry on my legacy, I would think that you would follow through on your commitments as well, and wouldn’t just shrug away your responsibilities so lazily. Am I correct in concluding this?” 

Ezra nodded without words. He never enjoyed talking with his boss, and determined that the less words he spoke, the less ammunition Dr. Crowe would have to work with.

Still, Dr. Crowe now eyed his Ezra like a serpent that just found the perfect moment to strike down on its weakened prey, “Then if that is the case, then why would you just let your assistant leave an hour before the company’s earliest permissible departure time? Does the newest generation of scientists not concern you, despite your responsibility in their upbringing?”

Despite his usual apprehension to speak, Ezra was quick to defend his assistant, “Dr. Crowe, Vera is by far the best intern we’ve ever had here, you know that! And besides, she’s already done much more than her job description requires of her, rightfully earning her access to the lower floors of the facility. In fact, the status reports that you’re asking for primarily consist of data sheets that she wrote up. Not me.”

Dr. Crowe glared down at him with a repulsive kind of condescension, “I see… so between the two of you, you’re the slacker that I need to chew out.”

Ezra held back his tongue once more, immediately regretting his meager attempt at defiant heroism.

At this, Dr. Crowe checked his watch, “Ezra, I wanted those status reports on my desk almost twenty four hours ago. It is absolutely paramount that I review them before the upcoming national R&D summit. You understand that, don’t you?”

Ezra knew exactly what this meant. The summit was over a week from today, and the status reports were only so complicated and elaborate in their material, especially since Dr. Crowe was already very aware of the experiment’s general status: contain and stimulate the specimen in various ways to see how it behaves. 

So yes, Ezra knew this meant that Dr. Crowe was being a prick, simply because he could.

This much was very clear. But so too was Ezra’s own cowardice, “I’ll see to it that it’s done as soon as possible… sir.”

“As you should. And if you still need to discover something significant about the specimen, don’t hesitate to make it feel pain.” Dr. Crowe turned and opened the laboratory door to leave, “Don’t let me down, old bull…”

As the automatic door closed behind him, Ezra tipped his hat over his eyes. This wasn’t the first time his superiors at Cobalt made jokes about his age. And with Vera being as young as she was, it was fairly often that Ezra would feel as though 62 years old was well past his prime.

But that didn’t matter right now. There was work to be done.

…

After nearly two hours, Ezra’s only task left for the report was to write a brief summary of the project’s findings from this most recent quarter. Carefully observing his own notes, as well as Vera’s data sheets, he struggled to find any kind of correlation that could establish itself as a “cohesive conclusion”. A wing twitch last Tuesday, a strained exhale the week before, nothing at all could comment on the creature’s development over the course of the past few months. There had to be something conclusive there.

Frustrated, he shoved the papers aside, exhausted enough to start talking to himself in the empty room, “Ugh, can’t I just skip to tomorrow?” He sat with this thought for a moment, until he chuckled to himself, remembering that an even better option existed.

At this, he stood up and made for a filing cabinet in the corner of the room. In the lowest and largest drawer, there were only three items, one of which Ezra had no desire to interact with whatsoever. Instead, he acquired the other two, a pair of electronic devices that (according to the principles of time as a property of the universe) he most certainly should not have in his possession.

The Orion brand music player, and accompanying speaker were too compact and magnificent in their respective functions to compare with anything else in the year 1950. Ezra was a scientist through and through, but over the years, he would never muster the courage needed to take these devices apart to see how they worked. He was too afraid that he wouldn’t be able to fix them afterwards.

Looking around the lab once again to ensure that no one else was nearby (aside from the creature in the incubation tube), he then connected the two devices together. At this, the Orion player screen illuminated, displaying a vast collection of songs, most of which had yet to even exist. Ezra let the first song play using the mysterious “shuffle” feature, immediately setting a more uplifting atmosphere to help him manage his stressed brain as he worked. 

Returning to his notes, he found himself singing along to a song that wouldn’t be released for another fifteen years, “Baby you can drive my car…”

…

Just before another two hours could pass, Ezra leaned back from his desk. Despite finishing his work however, his facial expression was far from anything resembling relief or pride in a job well done. Instead, his fearful, wide eyes looked through the one sided mirror, now aware of a possibility that yielded a compelling report, but also robbed Ezra of the once carefully choreographed limbo that he and Vera had been coasting within for the past six months.

The summary of the report read as follows:

<-- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -->

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Upon re-reading this section, Ezra looked up from his desk once more, towards the incubation chamber. The creature remained docile, floating still within the incubation fluid.

<-- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -->

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Even if all he had to go on was mere suspicion, Ezra now felt cemented in his seat. Should the creature open its eyes, Ezra would have no idea what it would be capable of, or what it could do to him. He took deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself down, just as a new song began to play from the Orion player.

“Ticking away, the moments that make up the dull day…”

Time. 

Dreams. 

The music player. 

Despite the unease of his current situation, a memory flashed into Ezra's mind as he sat glued in his chair, reminding him of a particular ultimatum he once unknowingly agreed to a very long time ago. The night he acquired the Orion player, 52 years ago. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Even as a kid, Ezra wasn’t one to have dreams very often. And even if he did, he was much less likely to remember anything about them after he had woken up. Still, a certain dream had always stood out to him, especially since it ended up being genuinely prophetic. He would never forget that night.

Within the dark labyrinth of a seemingly endless forest, a young woman in a maid’s uniform stood alone, facing a tree. Her hair was matted, and her uniform was torn in places, as if she had gotten into some kind of trouble and never bothered to patch herself up.

From what Ezra remembered, she seemed to be tinkering with something inside the tree. He couldn’t tell what she was doing, on account of how she was facing, and how loud everything around them was.

TICK.TOCK.TICK.TOCK.

Suddenly, she turned around to face him, revealing her eyes to be nothing more than hollow expanses into an endless nothing. 

“Hello, Ezra.” She spoke modestly, with her hands behind her back, “My name is Meissa, and I’m a Maid of Time. You don’t know me, but I’ve been informed that over the course of your lifetime, you will develop and maintain a remarkably kind heart! I want you to know that these actions have been recognized, and to the extent that I can do something about that, I would like to offer you a gift.” 

She revealed the Orion brand devices, a speaker and player from behind her back, “Please accept these, and make the most of them. But be warned…” 

At this, she suddenly lunged forward, mere inches from the boy’s face. She spoke now in a harsh, cold whisper, “If anyone discovers that you have it, you will lose the privilege of living in what you call ‘the present’.”

She then stepped away, and assumed a gentle, bashful kind of smile, an unnatural contrast to what he had just witnessed. “Also, it may seem strange for me to say this… but if you happen to come across your grandson, tell him I’m waiting for him.”

As she giggled, Ezra's field of view suddenly whipped forwards and backwards and rapidly in all directions, trees spinning and smashing past him. Only seconds later, he found himself awake in a cold sweat, sitting upright in his bed in his childhood home. And to his surprise, there it was: the player and the speaker, wrapped delicately in a gift box on his lap.

It was by far the strangest dream Ezra had ever had, and it would be the strangest dream he ever would have. It left him with so many questions: How was this young woman able to give him these devices through his dream? How was she able to even communicate with him through his dream? How was he ever supposed to meet his grandson? And what bothered him most of all, what did she mean by her warning exactly?

Her declaration was enough to leave him very cautious about ever using the devices at all, afraid of someone else seeing them. It took another 20 years before he finally found himself with enough solitude to actually try using the devices: on a lonely night in his one bedroom home in the countryside, miles away from his nearest neighbor. As a result of years of apprehension and anticipation, this too was another night that he would never forget.

Strange sounds, in such detail, and all among such a vast catalog to choose from. And with absolute certainty, no one else was around to see it or hear it. Ezra wondered how he could have gone through life without such a mesmerizing contraption at his disposal, and he certainly couldn’t go on living the same way again knowing that he could have this to look forward to at the end of each day. The player quickly began to shape his lifestyle, and for years, Ezra often found himself satisfied and enamored in a vast, musical isolation.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And after this many years, the possibility that someone, or something, right here, right now, could very well be listening to the Orion player, sent a chill up his spine like never before. And in the moments that followed, he would realize that his suspicions and fears were in fact very justified. After all, even a dreaming, alien, mutant monster couldn’t keep up an act like this forever.

“Stop… that… noise…” It spoke in a low growl. Low enough for Ezra not to hear it, but visible enough for him to see its mouth move.

The music continued behind him, “No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun...”

Suddenly, the creature’s eyes flashed open, locking its cold glare directly at Ezra, despite the mirror. With a snarl, the monster revealed a series of sharp, hungry teeth.

“I said STOP THAT NOISE!!!”

With a grunt, it began kicking and punching the inside of the incubation chamber while tearing away the tubes and wires that held it captive.

In a panic, Ezra’s fight or flight response took control. On survival instinct alone, he sprinted to the emergency alarm on the wall, alerting the rest of the lab of the crisis. However, it took only a moment for Ezra to understand just how futile that was, realizing that it was already 3:00 in the morning. 

He was likely the only employee still here.

In this moment, Ezra’s mind suddenly became overwhelmed with a series of possibilities, all of which could become his inevitable fate. Would his monster break out and kill him? If it did, who else could it hurt? Dr. Crowe? Vera? Anyone else he may have known in his life before now? What could he do to prevent that from happening? Did he even have it in him to defend himself? And even if he did, if the monster already knew about the player, was he no longer safe from the woman he saw in his dream all those years ago? Every possibility that scattered through his racing mind seemed to end in an unavoidable grim conclusion.

Alarm lights around the room began to flash red as the emergency siren blared.

“AAAAAAGGGGGGRRRHH!!!”

The monster began to writhe in a new kind of agony. Attempting to cover its ears, the creature's hands squeezed its own head like a vice. It continued to kick at the chamber, desperate to escape, until…

SMASH

Glass shards scattered across the floor, followed by the spilling incubation fluid and the creature itself. The shards stabbed and sliced the creature’s skin as it landed and now writhed on the floor. The siren continued to blare, now all the louder in the creature’s ears without the protection of the chamber.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRHHHH!!!”

Through immense pain, it screamed and cried as it somehow found strength to stand and smash everything in sight around it in a manic tantrum. It turned in every direction, looking for someone, anyone to listen, until it once again locked eyes with Ezra.

“Hel- m-”

And suddenly, as if something foul had just squirmed within its stomach, vomit spewed from its malnourished lips.

Ezra quivered in place, unsure of what to do. It was apparent that the creature needed help, but it was smashing everything up. Monitors crushed, documents soiled, chemicals spilled. Before long, it would likely destroy the vat of nutritional fluid, the very thing it needed to survive, without realizing it.

In its fit of rage, the monster then bashed its head into a fuse box on the wall next to the doorway. At this, the siren, and the lights seized their unison scream and the lab room became nearly silent. All but the Orion player, still playing its song, 

“Shorter of breath, and one day, closer to death.”

In the pitch black room, the song approached a more horrifying, crawling tempo, as if it too mimicked the now lumbering, inevitable malice of the monster known as Capricorn.

“Stop. Stop now. Plea-” The creature, struggling to speak like a human, couldn’t finish its own sentence before retching again.

Struggling to control his panicked breathing, Ezra quivered as he reached into the filing cabinet for its remaining item, the one he hoped he’d never have to use. He felt his finger make contact with the trigger, sending a chill up the otherwise gentle man’s spine. Subconsciously, his finger retreated away from it, as if it was hot to the touch.

“I can't... take... anymore...” The creature growled.

Without sound, and without breathing, Ezra forced himself into a defensive position on the floor. He slowly brought out the pistol, and pointed it towards where he believed the vengeful voice lingered.

Point, pull, kill. In theory, that’s all it would take to defend himself. Simple enough, right? And if he couldn’t accomplish this simple task, he’d either die at the hands of a monster or be sentenced to a mysterious demise at the hands of a woman who could communicate across time and space. 

But even if he couldn’t save himself, he could still at least try to save Vera. Wasn’t that the best he could accomplish? With no wife or family to his name? It was the best a coward like him could do. At least that’s what he wanted to think.

This didn’t change the fact that deep down, Ezra was a pacifist.

The surface of the repulsive weapon felt as though it was oozing into Ezra’s palms, the hands of a soon to be murderer. The lump in Ezra’s throat crawled around like a bug, and his cheeks had become damp with the trails of frightened tears. Terrified, he shut his eyes, hoping that this would all just stop and be something else, somehow. 

Press the pause button, skip ahead, or go back to the beginning and try it all again. Go back and retry all of the things he wanted to do but didn’t. Anything but this.

But the world didn’t work like the Orion player. Ezra only now realized just how much he wanted it to.

SMASH

The music suddenly stopped, leaving the room in pitch black, and complete silence. A second passed. A minute. And before long, the monster’s heavy breathing made its nearby presence known. Closer, and closer. Ezra held his breath, too afraid to move his index finger, knowing now that he didn’t have it in him to shoot.

I can’t do this…

Finally, I can talk…

A distinctly masculine voice seemed to appear without origin. This sounded like the monster’s voice, but it didn’t come from the direction of the crash. It sounded as though it were not inside, but next to Ezra’s mind.

“Is… is that you?” Ezra said aloud, astonished that he was not only still alive, but now having a conversation with the creature.

You don’t need to speak with your mouth.
I can hear your thoughts, just as you can hear mine.

Ezra’s thoughts suddenly raced.

What the… how is this possible? Was I drugged at some point? Did someone inject me with something? How is this possible? Why has the specimen calmed down now that the music has stopped? Is he going to kill me now that he’s free? Maybe I really am about to die. Is this really it? Will Vera be safe? Will anyone be safe now that he’s escaped the incubation chamber? Have I failed? Why am I still alive? I don’t understand. Anything but this!

Shut… up…

Surprised, Ezra spoke aloud again, “Y-you can hear all of that?”

Yes. All of it.

“I’m… sorry.” 

It’s okay.

“I’m sorry for the alarms. And the music.”

Don’t apologize just… calm down. 

“Please don’t kill me. I’m sorry. I’m sorry…”

I’m not going to hurt you, and everything will be okay.
I think this was just… a misunderstanding.

Misunderstanding. This word seemed to be the thing that helped Ezra click out of fight or flight. Lowering the gun, he then took a minute to calm down, the monster waiting patiently for him as he did so.

Good.

Ezra then tried to continue the conversation with only his mind, knowing that the monster could hear him in there. Quieting his inner monologue as much as he could.

How can I trust what you’re saying?
Wait… did he just realize that I still have doubts?
Why would he trust me if he knows I don’t trust him yet?

Hmmm…
If it would be more comfortable for you to speak aloud instead, you may do so.
I can understand how difficult it may be to quiet your mind completely
That being said, I won’t acknowledge anything that I hear from your mind,
only what comes from your mouth.

For a being with telepathic abilities, this monster was surprisingly ethical when it came to utilizing them. This helped Ezra calm down even more, “Hmm… Thank you.”

Silence passed between them for a moment, both a bit unsure of how to proceed, despite their newly agreed upon method for conversation. Ezra eventually broke the silence, “How are you able to put your voice inside my mind?”

The biology of my species has allowed us to transmit and receive thoughts to one another.
It’s an evolutionary trait that… admittedly… has backfired a little.
We emit less sounds into the air when we communicate,
so we are now that much less attuned to using our
ears for anything louder than a whisper.
That’s why I had to crush your sound device.
The frequencies it was emitting were agonizing for me.

“Then you’re certain that you’re okay with me talking with my mouth like this?”

Yes.
Your discomfort in having to minimize your
train of thought seems significantly greater
than my discomfort in processing your spoken speech.
Our decided method for communication is as… mutually beneficial… as we c-

At this, the monster turned away to vomit onto the floor again.

Ezra spoke, just as concerned for his specimen’s wellbeing as he always had been, “Why are you throwing up? Is it because of your conditions here? I didn’t mean to inflict harm on you.”

No, no, this isn’t your fault.
Unlike my ability to communicate via thoughts as a biological trait,
my nausea and vomiting are more… individually psychological.
I’d rather not get into the details behind that.

“I see. I’m sorry you have to go through that.”

You apologize too much.

Silence sat between them again, although the look on the monster’s face suggested that he didn’t perceive such an interaction as awkward or undesirable. Still, the monster was the one to break this silence.

Do you have a name?

“Ezra. Ezra Birch. What’s yours?

Hmm… I find it interesting that you think I have one.

It only seemed natural to Ezra to ask the same question in return, “Hmm… I guess I’ve decided that you seem human enough to have one in the same sense that I do. Do you not have one?”

The monster had to think about this for a moment, as if it somehow wasn’t a question that warranted an immediate answer.

I guess I do, now that I think about it.
Someone called me “Corny” once.

With the mood now lighter, Ezra found some humor in this, “Seems fitting, don’t you think?” Ezra reached over to grab a folder that had landed on the floor next to him and showed it to Corny. At the top right, the Capricorn astrology symbol was depicted as an official logo for the project.

Maybe. I’ve heard of many human mythologies and systems before,
but I don’t hold any genuine belief in what you call “astrology”.

“Fair enough. I don’t either. It was Dr. Crowe’s idea to name the experiments that way.”

Hmm.

More silence. It was enough for Corny to feel some awkward tension as well, aware of the elephant in the room.

Look, I don’t know what your purpose is with me, but I wish to leave.

Ezra wasn’t surprised to hear that, he would have said the same thing if the tables were turned. Still, for the sake of his coworkers and his apprentice, he scraped together some defensive resolve. Managing to put his finger on the trigger again, he hoped he could at least make a compelling bluff, “I can’t imagine you like it here, but I’m not sure if I can just let you leave. How can I know for certain that you won’t hurt me or anyone else after I let you go?”

Ezra, I can read your mind.
I know you don’t have it in you to shoot me.

A little embarrassed, Ezra moved his finger away from the trigger again.

If I acquire what I need,
then I have no need to inflict pain on anyone here at this facility,
let alone this planet for that matter.
I wish to leave this planet. I don’t belong here.

Ezra raised an eyebrow, “And… how would you do that exactly? We don’t have rocket ships here.”

I only need what I arrived here with.
It isn’t very big.

Ezra wasn’t sure what Corny was referring to. When he was appointed to oversee Project Capricorn, he wasn’t informed on what the creature had in terms of belongings when he was found, let alone that he had any at all. After all, Dr. Crowe was especially secretive about the nature of how the specimen was captured.

“What does it look like?”

It’s a small, yet very powerful aquatic creature,
contained within a bottle.
I’ll see if I can communicate with it.

Corny closed his eyes in an attempt to communicate with it, only to open them not even a second later. Surprised to have found it so quickly, Corny fixed his gaze on the filing cabinet where Ezra stored his belongings. He pointed to it ominously.

It’s…  right there.
The top drawer.
I… can even hear it crying.

Despite this claim, Ezra couldn’t hear anything. Walking over to the drawer, he pulled out the same key he used to open his own drawer. He had never opened this top drawer before, believing that Dr. Crowe kept his belongings in here, and never saw a reason to tamper with them. However, if Corny was so certain that a powerful creature in a little bottle was inside, then maybe he had been wrong this whole time.

And sure enough, as Ezra opened the drawer, a bright, white light emitted from within. After his eyes adjusted to the light, Ezra saw exactly what Corny claimed was inside: A small creature, contained in a bottle. The bottle appeared to contain enough water to allow the koi fish looking creature to swim freely. The little fish was hardly any bigger than a quarter.

Putting it simply, that fish is a tool
that can help me travel anywhere in the universe.
And it can do so, even in its limited state.

“Limited state?” Ezra asked as he closed the drawer. He then began taking a closer look at the fish and its intricate, monochrome patterns, careful to hold the bottle with two hands.

You see, that fish there, Sol, is just one of a pair.
It’s separated from its partner so it can’t perform to its fullest potential.
However, it can still do what it was created to.

“And what is that exactly?” As he asked this, Ezra and Corny looked away from the fish to make eye contact.

It exists to destroy anything it is told to.

“...Anything?” Ezra gulped.

Yes.
If placed in the wrong hands, this creature could lead to tremendous downfall.
Regrettably… for a long time, I have been those wrong hands.

Ezra felt a chill up his spine. Could this little fish kill him? At this, the thought flashed in Ezra’s mind to grab his gun again. 

Despite Corny’s agreement to only acknowledge Ezra’s spoken words, the monster took this into account.

I promised you that I wouldn’t hurt you, didn’t I?
Besides, I don’t mean to say that I still wish to be those wrong hands.
In fact, that’s something I hope to atone for.

“Still, I don’t think I can just give this to you. How can I know for certain that I can trust you?”

Well, let’s consider our mutual circumstances first.
I wish to leave, so I can return this fish to its owner.
I used it in very malicious ways, and I wish to atone for my actions.
Obviously, I can’t do that if I don’t have the fish.
Meanwhile, you need me here to keep your life in a sustainable position, with me as a research subject.
That being said, we can’t achieve our respective needs, so long as this research facility
knows that I exist and in turn, wants to know more about me.

“Then what do you suggest we do then?”

Simple.
You give me the fish
and I destroy Cobalt’s knowledge that I exist.
My containment here will no longer be a necessity for you.

Ezra didn’t consider how abstract this destruction power could be. As far-fetched as it sounded, Corny spoke with absolute confidence, as if erasing thousands of people’s memories was as easy as picking up a quarter off the floor.

“You can really do that?”

Yes. It would be a tall order for the little fish,
but it could effectively erase any and all consequences
that you may face as a result of letting me escape.

“A tall order? Does using the fish hurt it in some way?”

Corny waited a moment, and answered solemnly, 

Yes, it does. And I’m not proud of that.
In fact, that little guy used to shine twelve times brighter than the star your planet orbits.
The fact that you aren’t blind right now is just as much a miracle for you
as it is a reflection of my own greed in exploiting it for so long.

Ezra was quick to respond to this. For the first time in a long time, he spoke from his heart, “Then I have no desire to have anyone’s memories erased. I’d prefer it if you don’t use the fish on my behalf.” 

Even as a leading R&D scientist in Cobalt Lab’s foreign specimen division, Ezra was no stranger to compassion for other living things. For better or worse, it was the one thing that kept him from a more successful position at the company.

Hmm… I see that you have a kind heart. Much more so than my own.
However, that being said, it would seem as though I have nothing to offer you.
Still, that doesn’t change the fact that I have my own needs…

One look at Corny's now ominous glare was enough for Ezra to understand what he was getting at. If Ezra’s only benefit here was the least amount of bloodshed, then surrendering the fish for nothing in return was now his most favorable course of action. Upon realizing this, Ezra surrendered the bottle to Corny.

You’re not only kind, but wise as well.

With the fish in his possession again, Corny wasted no time in making use of it. Ezra could suddenly hear the little fish wince in pain as the room began to rumble and shake, likely from Corny giving it a command. It was a quiet and chirping kind of whine, enough for Ezra to empathize with its pain. Ezra had to look away and cover his ears.

After a minute, the shaking and distortion in the room began to concentrate into an oval, no bigger than one of the lab’s doorways. The oval established a sharp, defined perimeter,  glowing with an odd black and green kind of hue.

I’ve erased the space between here and where I wish to go next,
concentrated in a small enough space to not disturb the integrity of this place.
But don’t worry, I am simply going to your moon.
The relatively short distance made it so I did not hurt the fish very much.

“You’re still going to return it though, right?”

Yes. All the way at the center of the universe.
I will make that journey, without the fish’s help.
It is my responsibility to atone for all that I have done.
I will return it, and I will be punished accordingly.

Ezra sat in silence, unsure of what to say as his life’s greatest achievement was about to disappear into outer space, gone forever.

Goodbye Ezra. Thank you for your kindness.
To me and to the fish.
It’s more than someone like me deserves.

Not a second after he stepped through the portal, it closed behind him, leaving Ezra alone in an empty laboratory, now completely without a purpose. 

And by the next morning, without a job.

…

Six years later, in a small house in the countryside, Ezra relaxed in a rocking chair on his porch, alongside his newlywed wife, Maria. There, they sat as the sun set over fields of corn and wheat and accomplishment, listening to music that played from a purple Orion brand music player and speaker that shouldn’t have existed yet.

At this moment, Ezra thought back to the night before, when he first received the two purple devices. They were a gift from someone that he could now call a friend. From his pocket, he took out and reread the note that accompanied the gift box on his dining room table.

<-- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Is that the letter from your friend?” Maria asked as she continued to knit yet another homemade sweater, this one boasting what appeared to be gold apothecary scales, depicted in yellow thread on the front. This hobby of hers was something that Ezra had always found amusement in since meeting her for the first time five years prior.

“Yeah. And it sounds like he ended up exactly where needed to be.” Ezra wanted to continue the thought, but decided to keep the rest of it to himself.

And so did I.