Chapter 3: Finding A Way

Nathaniel and I were ready as the thief rose, bloodstained and battered, my knife still sticking out of his stomach. He snarled at us, an almost animal fury glinting in his eyes, took two faltering steps forward, and collapsed onto the ground.

That was the first person we had saved, long before I had started work on the energy cells. Now, with the tiny micro-energy plants almost complete, I was getting excited. If I could do that much good for the world with my tiny knife, how much more good could I do for the world with this near-limitless supply of energy?

Banishing all forethought from my mind, I began further testing. The small cell would power my house; good. The small cell would power my car; good. The small cell would power an aircraft; extraordinary. The small cell would power a jet car; profound. The small cell would power San Francisco for over 36 hours; unbelievable. This cell could last anywhere from fifteen to one hundred years, depending on its use. I had, in the palm of my hand, the most amazing invention to date!

Now that I had the liquid energy I needed to further my ambitions, I began experimenting with what I had dreamed of: electromagnetic pulse charge. Electromagnetic pulse, commonly known as EMP, is a burst of energy that disables other types of energy. The heat and shock given off by an EMP charge is nearly blinding, and far more powerful than most nuclear weaponry. Sadly, EMP takes massive amounts of energy to power, and hence, had not been experimented with beyond a simple disabling device. I, however, saw its true capabilities.

If EMP force could be contained within an energy field, the energy would build until the field exploded, creating a super-EMP blast that could disable an entire city. If a larger field were used, the blast could disable an entire nation, hemisphere, or possibly the whole planet. All I needed was a significant opposing force to keep the mass amounts of energy in place.

I began experimenting with electromagnetic forces. I needed a way to keep the EMP energy contained within a small area so that it could build energy. Just like I had compacted the Strobium, I now wished to compact EMP force. This undertaking would be not only extraordinary, but nearly impossible, as EMP was magnetic in itself. I needed a counter-system that would allow me to force the energy so tightly that the neutrinos with produced the energy would be all but disabled in their movement.

It was thus that I discovered "energy alignment" or "Energy Internment" as it is commonly known today. By forcing small energy particles (previously thought to be non-existent) to align in a specific, perfectly-balanced pattern, the energy would be not only self sustaining, but would remain in a fixed formation without the use of a forcefield. After this, I noticed other types of energy alignment that naturally occurred: the sun's rays spaced evenly over the earth; the stars' light flowing directly down from the heavens; and finally, the moon's light gently refracting and spreading over half of the planet at a time. How could science not have noticed this before?

I can tell you why; energy alignment is hard work. Each energy "nuculoid" (the common name for one atom [0.0000001 unit] of energy) needed to be evenly spaced from the next until the arrangement had reached a certain limit. The energy contained this field would not build unless a nuculoid were moved purposefully, destroying the symmetry of the field and causing the energy to build until it exploded. This may sound very technical, and it is, but now we have machines to do the work for us. Back then, I was forced to do it by hand.

This required the use of what I like to call the "light scalpel". I used a tiny string of white-hot aluminum, held in place by a small glass barrier, to heat the raw energy pouring from the emitter (another scientific gadget which I will not explain here, as it is now relatively obsolete). As this happened, I used the light scalpel to drag a solid line of the tiny nuculoids to the desired length of the field and back again, in this way creating an "energy web" of tiny energy atoms. I discovered that this field took on the properties of one of the most famous icons in fanboy history: The "Light Saber" of Lucas' lore. The blade, as it came to be, was white hot. It required the emitter to sustain it, but would follow the emitter's movements. In this way, I learned to maneuver the blade about and was able to slice through solid steel in a single stroke. With this blade, I could pierce tank armor!

I fashioned a portable gauntlet that would allow me to wear the blade wherever I went. Attaching the gauntlet to my power-cell, I was able to bring this EMP blade wherever I wanted to go and use it to varying effectiveness on certain targets I deemed necessary of testing. I had to be discreet in the usage of this sword, as it gave on intense light whenever it was active. I was able to turn the sword "off" by deactivating the flow of energy from the emitter (simply flicking the switch on the power-cell to the "off" position). This was a most extraordinary invention.

The glorious heat of the blade, however, made it almost unusable as, if it came within several inches of my body, I was in serious danger of burning myself. The gauntlet wasn't made of the most heat-resistant metal, and I found my hand was covered with second-degree burns early on in the testing of the blade.

As this dilemma arose, so did another; the blade was severely unmanageable. The energy made the blight "counter-weightless", so to speak; the blade would randomly jerk me up into the air whenever an upward-stroke was executed. While at first I found this slightly amusing, it grew to be clear to me that I was left vulnerable to enemies on the ground as I rocketed skyward. It was a miracle that the colder air in the sky cooled the blade, allowing me to drift slowly back to earth. Here, I must give my Heavenly Father some credit. His laws never fail.

I needed to be heavier. I also needed a metal that would not heat up, yet that was strong enough to fashion the emitter out of. This posed all sorts of tiny problems, as most earth-metals heated at well below the temperature to which the blade was attuned; therefore, I was left with two choices. One, I had to make the blade colder, or two, I had to find a new type of metal.

Chapter 2: Micro Management

I shrank the Strobium. Seems impossible, doesn't it? Strobium is one of the most dense materials on our planet. But I shrank it to the size of a grain of salt. Enough to power that card-shaped box for several years. Wires spun in and out of ports as I connected them to and from the small, dish-shaped depression in the center of the box. In this I placed the Strobium.

I didn't actually shrink the Strobium. As far as I know, that is impossible. But every material on earth can be compacted. In essence, pressed in on itself until it takes up no space. Density just increases, leaving the material heavier than usual. Strobium is very dense already, so I needed a powerful compacter. We won't get into that, but let's just say that American Compacting, the people who ended the world's trash troubles through "shrinking" garbage got their ideas and machinery from me.

After the Strobium was compacted, the rest was easy. After the wires were connected and a small amount of Uranium 238 was deposited in the depression with the Strobium, I placed the lid on the box and pressed a small switch on the side. I had disconnected the electricity from my house, and was using all of our tech to test it. As soon as I had plugged that baby in, every light in our house flickered on, every computer hummed noisily, the blender spun, the microwaves buzzed, and every other electronic device zinged to life. Success!

Beyond this point, the story takes an epic turn. You use these power cells in things today. Your computer has one. Your house has one. They are inexpensive and easy to come by. But back in those days, I had the only one. An unlimited supply of energy in the palm of my hand. What was I going to do with it?

Well, I hadn't really thought of that. Essentially, I could sell it, hide it, or put it to good use. But what was good use?

Ever since I was a child, I had dreamed of being a superhero. I wanted to save the week, battle the evil, and earn respect and glory for myself. I know it was self-centered, but doesn't every child wish this at some point? Doesn't every boy or girl wish to fly, to be able to shoot lasers, to have power beyond their wildest dreams? I was no different, though I held this desire into a much later age.

I used this power for good. I used it to create one of the most legendary items ever created; an item which is desired to this day. No one has ever found it. That is because I have it. But I'm getting ahead of myself. To recount, I must return to a previous date.

Nathaniel is my cousin. He and I were 16, and happy. We were good friends. We hung out. We did things together. One day, we saw a guy getting mugged. This would not have been strange in Portland, or in San Francisco, or in New York. Lots of crimes happen in those places. But this was Lebanon, a small town; we were highly disturbed.

We just stood there. The man didn't notice that we were watching. His victim didn't notice that we were watching. But, simultaneously, we had the exact same idea. We were both Conservative citizens, and believed in the right to bear arms. Sadly, we only had knives. I wish we had thought that through better, but the end result would have been the same.

We approached the mugger. Nathaniel took out a small penknife, shaped like a leaf. I had a larger Buck knife that I had been given for Christmas. It was sharp; I was obsessed with keeping my knives razor sharp. The mugger turned at the sound of our approach. His eyes glazed with fear. This gave us confidence.

"Hey, fellas, I don't want no trouble," he said, dropping the wallet he had been raiding and putting his hands up. Now, I was afraid. I had never saved anyone, though I had dreamed of being a defender. I was not even ready to attack this man; Nathaniel, however, was wittier than I.

"You should have thought of that before you started mugging someone," Nathaniel said. "You do the crime, you pay the price." With a slow lurch, Nathaniel lunged forward, extending his knife before him. The thief sidestepped. I don't know what happened, but I was suddenly charging as well, my larger knife slashing through the air. It caught in the thief's jacket. It was razor sharp. It cut through the fibrous material like butter. The thief didn't notice. He was too busy kicking Nathaniel out of the air. Nathaniel spun into some nearby trash cans.

I jabbed with the knife. It struck the thief in his ribs. His face registered pain as he turned and hit me in the face. It wasn't a hard hit, but I wasn't accustomed to be slapped around. I stumbled backward, stunned. I hadn't anticipated being hit, but thank God, my knife was still in my hand. The mugger tried to run, but tripped on one of the trash cans left by Nathaniel's fall. He stumbled forward, right over Nathaniel hulking form. Nathaniel was holding his knife in his left hand, and he jabbed at the thief's neck. He nicked the thief's throat, and a small red slit appeared. The thief grabbed his neck; finally, his fear had turned to anger. He turned to Nathaniel and I and reached into his own pocket.

"Fine, boys; you want a fight, you got one." He withdrew a blackjack. He lunged at me and swung the blackjack at the side of my head. Now, you would think I would just stand there stunned. I had never been in a fight before. But I did have brothers. I had learned, through years of wrestling and random friendly attacks to duck if someone swings at you. I had also learned that, when swung at, you swing back. I ducked under the thief's attack and jammed my knife into his stomach. This time it stuck. As the thief turned, my knife was wrenched from my grasp. I was defenseless. Nathaniel, however, had recovered his balance.

He slashed at the thief as he ran past, stumbling over the garbage. His knife did not stick, but it cut the thief's wrist. The thief dropped his blackjack as he stumbled onto his face. I didn't realize at the time that my knife had been pushed farther inside by the weight of his own body. The thief tried to get up, but by now, the blood loss was getting to his head.

What were we going to do about this?

Chapter 1: Evolving Destinies

Technology is an ally to which man is now inexorably bonded. With the advent of iPods, Computers, Video Games, and every possible mode of entertainment flying about The Cloud, man has reached his information summit. A standstill has taken place at the flush fullness of humanity and technology, which have both reached their peak. Man has flung his dedication, application, and happiness out the window, door, hole-in-the-wall, etc. to exchange it for temporary entertainment.

Out of this fray, I rose. Out of that technological peak, I pushed beyond the summit. I took off into the air from a standing position and flew. Both literally and figuratively; but, I'm getting ahead of myself.

I am a family member. I do what I am told. I fold laundry, mow lawns, take care of animals that belong to my brothers and sister. I am an ordinary member of society. Or at least, I was. This all changed when I found my initiative.

You see, I had been procrastinating. I refused to graduate; refused to work hard; refused to do my civic duty and better mankind with my services. I was, in essence, lazy. I began, however, to take an interest in circuits and electricity. I began experimenting. I took apart a digital camera and made a tazer. I took apart a computer and made an algorithm machine. I took apart a CD player and made a Blu-Ray player, with the addition of some other parts. Circuits, wiring, programming...all took on a new meaning for me. Yet, my efforts were still a waste of time.

These things were not portable. They drank power; ate it like a child eats candy. Greedily, whole-heartedly, knowing there is enough to go around. I was devastated. The electricity bill skyrocketed. My mother harangued me mercilessly. I still hadn't graduated, I still didn't have a job, I still wasn't working to further my family or my community. To her, I was still just an invaluable slob who enjoyed taking useless things apart and building more useless things. I hated her attitude, but I had to succumb.

I graduated to feed my urge. I got a job to feed my urge. I helped to sell our house...all to feed this urge I had. An idea was forming. A destiny was evolving. I needed to create a power source; one small enough to fit into your back pocket, but with an unlimited self-sustaining energy source. I would try. I had to.

For months afterward, I spend all my spare time (less than two hours a day) tinkering with batteries. Finding out how they worked; how they charged; how they could be dismantled and reassembled without damage. Still, these sources of energy were finite. Even the rechargeable batteries died eventually, never to be used again. I needed a battery that contained, not reactionary energy, but pure, fluid energy.

Let me explain the difference between reactionary energy and pure, fluid energy. Reactionary energy is the result of a reaction. In the case of a battery, electricity is pumped into a cell that creates a reaction within atoms, producing a limited supply of energy as those atoms give it off. Once the atoms are expended, however, the battery dies. Rechargeable batteries can have the energy placed back into them, but eventually, their atoms lose the ability to expend and absorb energy. They unavoidably die. Pure, fluid energy is energy which is already stored in its purest form; able to flow from one point to another without a reaction. Just plain, pure energy. I needed to find a way to not only store that energy, put produce it infinitely, or have it produce itself. New Matter was needed.

I put aside my fascination with circuits and programs and studied chemistry. Each type of atom I studied. I looked for the answer in cobalt, iron, and nickel. I purchased massive quantities of oxygen, niacin, and iridium. Nothing satisfied the requirements. Nothing but an atom I was not able to synthesize without massive amounts of nuclear force and near-unlimited supplies of uranium. I needed to make Strobium. Strobium was what I would call the element, were I able to synthesize it. I knew of its existence from scientific reports. It gave off massive amounts of energy for a very short time; it has a half-life of 0.00067154 seconds; far less than one one-thousandth of a second. I needed a way to produce it in mass quantities using little or no matter at all.

I went back to the drawing board. I found a small piece of Plexiglas and melted it into a small, card-shaped, flat box with a removable lid, less than 1/8 of an inch thick in all. I needed a way to fit unlimited supplies of Strobium in there; or else create unlimited supplies within it. Would I be able? Was it even feasible? I had an idea.