The Mystery Package

The newspaper headline read: Another Great Time Saver by Yours Truly. Below the headline, there were multiple paragraphs about a new invention that would allow one's HOVR vehicle to stay in the air fifty miles longer without needing to stop. The following pages had information on the current water crisis and continued loss of space for any future buildings.

“They're gonna be putting more people in those apartment buildings soon ma.” Renold put down the paper and licked the last few drops of almond milk out of his cereal bowl. He went over to the sink and placed the bowl in. He went back to the table and grabbed the plate of fruit he hadn’t completely finished and placed it back in the ColdKeeper; I’ll eat that for lunch later today.

He plugged in the NewNews tablet back in the little bin under the window above the sink. He then headed for his room. He passed by the front door and began walking up the stairs. At the top of the staircase were three doors. The first door on the right was his mothers. She was still getting dressed as he passed by. She heard him walking up the stairs and said, “What was that earlier hon?”

Renold walked in the bathroom inside the left door, “Those new multilayered buildings will be filled pretty darn soon with all the new people coming in.” He took out his toothbrush and comb to do some quick services. Renolds mom replied, “I told you, didn't I? All those years ago I knew that when this InfiniteBattery company started up right after you were born, people all over would want to come and live here. Didn’t I say that Renny?”

“Yes mom, you have been saying that. But you also say that there are still aliens living among us and that dad is one of them.”

Renold’s mom opened her door, “That's because he is. He gained the experience he needed and left us. He didn't care about us at all. What more proof do you need? That is exactly what they do. They learn about how we act, what we eat and drink, how much we sleep and what work we do.” She opened her door to look towards the bathroom.

“Your father completed his task by having a child with me. When you were born, he wasn't even there to see you. They do not care about us and they’re all around us Renny, you better watch it.” Renold finished applying a light amount of gel to his hair to keep it upright. “I know mom, I'll be carefull.” He has heard his mom tell this story multiple times before.

Renold walked over to his room and opened the door, at the same time his mom walked over to the bathroom and closed the door; her turn for self services. Renold went to the opposite side of his bed which faced the back wall. He looked underneath where he had a few pairs of shoes lined up: running, yard work, casual, and dress. He took the casual pair and slipped them on. He walked back to the door and stopped before leaving. He opened his dresser and grabbed a small plastic bottle and unscrewed the cap. He held it over the tank and began to tap the bottle a few times making sure enough food was exiting.

“Eat up Oliver” said Renold to his tiny aquatic friend.

He walked out of his room and headed back for the stairs. The door package system rang, “I got it!” he yelled to his mom who was obviously not coming out of the bathroom any time soon. He hopped down the last few steps and opened the front door. There was no one standing in front of him but instead a DeliveryDrone2 was silently hovering in front of him. It was the latest model just released and it carried twice as much weight as the previous model and had a much longer battery life (for obvious reasons).

Renold wasn't expecting any packages. The drone hovered in front of him, Renold stood forward to activate the drones sensors and the camera scanned his face to confirm the delivery. The drone lowered down near the floor and emptied a small box from its compartment. The drone then said “Thank you, Renold Walker” in a very monotone voice. It also had the words “Thank You Renold Walker” on its forward facing digital screen. After that, it backed up and flew away; either to the next house or back to the factory for another delivery.

Renold took the package and brought it inside. After he closed the door, he walked over to the dinning table to set it down. He looked at it for a few seconds. The package was a small hand-sized cardboard box. It was wrapped in green paper. Renolds' mom came downstairs, “What was at the door?” Renold looked at his mom and asked, “Did you order anything for the house recently?” She walked into the kitchen “No,” she looked at the package and noticed the color. “Oh, it's your favorite color. Maybe it's from a secret admirer. I used to get those all the time in the early 2130’s.”

Renold picked up the box. He rotated it to see any difference in texture but nothing was wrong. It felt very light. He decided to open it. He tore the paper off and cut down the side of the box. Inside was a small letter. Renold unfolded the letter and read it outloud for himself and his mom. “Hello Renold, I have been waiting a long time to send this letter to you. I believe you would be interested in the work that I am doing and I think you would learn a lot from what I have been doing for the last decade and a half. I would love for you to meet me. Don't worry, I have everything arranged and an HOVR Limo will pick you up later today. See you soon! 212.”

“212?” His mom asked. “Yea I don't know either, but this seems pretty weird.” Renold was looking around the letter for any other clues. His mom said, “Well this person obviously likes you and what you can do. He thinks you can benefit from what he is doing and that would be great for you.” Renold was not buying it, “But what if it isn't real?” His mom started to walk back up the stairs, “A HOVR Limo is expensive honey. If it does not come then don't worry about it.” She stopped halfway up the stairs and looked back, “But if it does show up, then you better have some nice clothes on.”

—

Renold was waiting by the window looking out for any sign of activity. His thoughts were making him nervous. What if this person wants to kidnap me? I'm not worth anything. I barely talk to anyone at school and my mom is my best friend. Who would want me? After some pacing back and forth in front of the door, the bell rang.

He looked through the hole in the door and saw a smaller drone flying back into the side of a very glossy, black, long vehicle. It's here! Renold took a deep breath and opened the front door. The HOVR Limo side door was open, waiting for him to enter. He looked left and then right before stepping inside; nothing out of the ordinary. Inside was a multitude of snacks and drinks. The side door closed and he felt the Limo begin to move. He looked towards the front and saw no one driving. He had only heard about the new self driving installments. They were only accessible to the super rich and had their own transportation paths higher than most other HOVR vehicles.

Who is this person? Thought Renold as he slid towards the front of the Limo. He wanted to watch where he was going through the front glass. “Hello Renold!” Renold fell off his seat. “What? Who is there?” A small speaker in the front of the Limo started again, “Sorry to startle you. I am Professor James Smith. And I wanted to let you know that you will be here very soon. We have a separate path that will lead directly to the headquarters so sit back and I'll see you in a few minutes.” The speaker cut out.

James Smith? Headquarters? It can't be. Did I just get invited to talk with the owner of InfiniteBattery? Renold sat back and took it all in. What am I going to say, will I even see him or will it just be a bunch of lower ranking executives and such? Renold watched as the limo traveled towards the center of the city and away from home. He saw the little houses under him in the joining neighborhoods; some kids were playing outside. He then saw the large towers and buildings in the city. He saw the massive amount of activity throughout the city. What a huge difference.

Renold saw the headquarters. The tallest building in the city. If looked at from a distance, the top of InfiniteBattery looked much different than it should. It was not straight up like other buildings but instead spherical across, similar to that of a toy spinner. It was fully run by electricity and provided power to almost the entire city. They flew up to the side of the building where there was a main entrance. Above read the words InfiniteBattery. Past the main entrance was a side entrance that opened for the Limo. As Renold pulled into the building he was amazed at all the detail and creativity designed into the building. When he finally got out of the vehicle, a man was standing there in a dark suit and green tie.

He greeted Renold, “Hello sir, and welcome to ‘InfiniteBattery.’ You will meet the professor very shortly. First, will you please step to the side.” His hand motioned towards a security area with armed guards and safety scanners. “This is to make sure you are truly Renold Walker. And to make sure you're not holding any dangerous material on your person.” Renold walked over to the security station, “Of course, I understand. I love the green tie by the way.”

The man looked down and smiled, “We use colors to assign positions in this building. Green is the professor's favorite so only his close personnel wear it.” Renold began to walk through the identity scanner. He also needed to scan his thumbprint and iris. “Other colored ties are for the building security, management, and scientists.” Renold gathered his belongings and walked back towards the man. “That is super cool. A small detail but very efficient.” The man began to guide Renold towards the middle of the building where the elevators were.

He stopped in front of a wall slightly before the main elevators. He touched the wall on a side corner in a way that made a small electric scanner pop out. He grabbed his key kard and scanned it. This opened a large portion of the wall to show a secret elevator. “This is a direct passageway to the professor. It is much quicker, and nicer if I may say, then the normal lift. I hope you enjoy your time here Mr. Walker.” Renold stepped inside and looked back at the man. “Thank you for your help!” The doors closed and Renold started moving.

Within a minute Renold was at the top of the building. The elevator door opened and Renold stepped out into an extremely fancy room. To the right looked to be side rooms for living needs and to the left was a lab for what could only be the birthplace of so many of the great inventions InfiniteBattery has created.

Across from Renold was a living space and a large glass pane overlooking the brightly lit city. He walked over and gazed at the amazing sight, not noticing the figure sitting down behind him. “Amazing isn't it?” This startled Renold. He looked back and saw a man stand up from the cushioned seat. He instantly recognized him and couldn't believe his eyes. “You're James Smith! I can't believe it's really you. It's such an honor to meet your sir.”

James walked toward Renold and extended his hand, looking him in the eye smiling. “Please, the pleasure is mine. I'm so glad I finally found you.” Renold thought this sounded less formal than normal. They firmly shook hands. Something about James’ eyes were mesmerizing to Renold. “So what do you think about them?” The professor asked again. “Oh, the lights? They're beautiful sir.”

“No, not the lights. I'm talking about the people, about humanity.” Renold thought about it for a moment then replied, “I think they belong here. Sure they're not perfect but look where I am standing; in the building that changed humanity for good.” The professor chuckled, “Son, humanity would have been nothing without me.” Renold was confused. I know how businessmen think, but this is a little extreme. The professor continued.

“Humanity was running itself to extinction once they figured out how to make fire. That was the chain reaction needed to create creativity in the mind. It was what created questions about the life around them. This ultimately led to the few smart enough to answer these questions through demonstration or words. But humanity is so dumb that most of the ones with answers were killed or tortured; because they were right.” Renold took a step

back. “The penultimate problem with humanity is that they can't accept new things right away. Their belief system is so corrupted by themselves. If they choose to believe in something, they should believe in the same thing, it will grow them as a species. But no, they all have their own beliefs because every one of them thinks they are better than the rest. And there lies the ultimate problem. When there are differences, there will never be peace.”

He looked at Renold who was very confused. Renold himself was in his thoughts again. Why is he speaking like this, as if he doesn't believe in himself? Why did he do so much for humanity then? Maybe he is right, we are our only true enemy. Renold gathered the courage to speak. “You may be right on some accounts, but the differences are the exact reason we are our own species. We have come a long way in this world in terms of knowledge and interconnectivity.”

The professor began to laugh and walked over to a panel in the middle of the room. “That was all inevitable Renny, you should know this!” Renny? Only my family calls me that. “The integration of different races was bound to happen eventually. People would eventually realize that there was no difference between them and the correct laws would be put into effect sooner or later. You should just be happy it was sooner or I wouldn't be here.” He chuckled to himself again. He typed in a passcode on the panel and it opened to what looked like a control system.

He continued. “And the greater knowledge over time is a fact son. With more time comes more everything! Humanity takes it all in and distributes each new detail. Now due to the human system of government and politics, most information is distributed quite unevenly and mostly filtered for those that think they are better than the rest.” Renold was extremely confused. At this point he knew that James was not talking nonsense. He asked, “I'm sorry sir but may I ask why exactly you brought me here today?”

The professor looked at him for a moment and stated, “Don't you understand? I guess you're still too young, but I gave humanity the last breath of life they needed. Will they hold it in and build on it, or exhale and perish. But you're not going to be here to see it.” Renold asked, “Why because it will occur after I'm dead?” The professor walked away from the control panel and stood in front of Renold. He put his arm on his shoulder. He looked him in the eye and said, “Because you're my son Renny.”

“What! No, that's not true. My dad left me before I was born.” He began to get emotional, looking at the professor for an answer: “I told you it was hard finding you, but you do not deserve to live with this infested species. I am already way past my bounds on this, but I'll explain it all on the way home.” Renold was mad now. “No, I don't want to go home with you. You don't deserve anything in our house. You don't deserve to see my mom ever again! The professor agreed. “We have no intention of seeing your mother ever again. She is not needed at home.” The professor pushed a few things around in the control panel and the room started to move. Renold stumbled over and he looked outside and saw the

city begin to spin around him. We have detached from the building. “I do not have another home!” Shouted Renold. The professor looked at Renold and said, “Yes you do… and it's certainly not on this planet.”