Sugar Bomb

The Goddes

"They intercepted the escape pod!" echoed a muffled shout from one of the guards in the corridor. I squinted in disbelief, then my eyes met equally astonished gazes of the other men present in the Great Hall. I jumped out of my chair and rushed to the door, which, when opened, revealed the scene of pervasive and unfamiliar commotion.

"Nothing is confirmed yet," I heard whispers echoing down the extensive corridor. "They said it's a cryo-pod," murmured the guards stationed at the entrance to the control room, just beyond the bend. I was in shock. If what they were saying was true, God only knew what would be inside; perhaps another form of life, extraterrestrial. I felt a long-forgotten excitement and a surge of adrenaline. I have to be there first, I thought, and certainly before they open that pod. I hurriedly bypassed the guards guarding the control room and ran down the corridor. The sound of my footsteps echoed on the metal stairs, and I tried to calm myself, with the thought in the back of my mind that probably nothing would come of it. But deep in my heart, a flicker of hope remained, that perhaps this was a creature from which we could extract samples and isolate entirely new cells, leading to a breakthrough in our research.

"Within a few minutes, I reached the cargo hold, and an unusual sight greeted my eyes: a group of men in biohazard suits surrounded a long, barely visible object among their ranks. I slowed down, restraining my curiosity with caution. From the crowd of masked soldiers emerged a figure surrounded on all sides by protection—also in masks and suits. I didn't have to think twice; it was the emperor.

"Welcome, sir," I bowed quickly, realizing that this wasn't the way. Two men in protective gear grabbed me and dragged me to the far corner of the cargo hold.

"Welcome, Seth. You have to do something for me," the older man mumbled, stepping toward me. "Put on this suit, for your own safety." I obediently nodded, staring firmly into his icy-blue eyes. An uneasy feeling began to manifest in my clenched stomach. Could it be contaminated? No, impossible... just standard procedures. The Emperor's guard handed me the protective gear, and I did as he asked.

"Come closer," the older man said, reaching out his hand towards me. I didn't know what to expect. But since the most guarded person on the Ark was closer to this phenomenon than I was, I figured I could take a few more steps forward. The pod began to emerge from between the men; elongated, resembling a coffin. Curiosity got the better of me. I leaned in, and before my eyes appeared the printed word: EARTH.

I blinked a few times. Impossible. The pod must have been sent from Earth. That Earth. Our former home. The language in which the word was written was understandable, the letters blurred and barely visible, but the sight of that name seared into my mind.

"You look like you've seen a ghost," whispered the emperor with a barely visible smile from behind his mask.

"I think that would be a more rational explanation than... a pod from Earth," I replied, staring at the object as if bewitched.

"Seth, listen," he whispered, turning to face me. "Whatever is in there, we need to open it. In quarantine. You're one of my most trusted men." Hearing his intentions, I furrowed my brow, but I understood everything.

"Transport it to quarantine," I shouted, making a sweeping gesture with my hand. "Don't stop along the way, and stick to protocol," I added, feeling the growing uncertainty.

The Emperor nodded reassuringly, sending me a cold glance. I turned on my heel and followed the group of men in protective suits, carrying the capsule like a coffin. We reached the laboratory as quickly as possible. It was connected to the Great Hall through which we passed. I felt the stares of other researchers on me.

"Mr. Black, what's happening?!" Aaron Smith, the youngest in our team, recently turned thirty, so not too young for an expert in advanced experimental research, exclaimed in fear.

"Stay calm, Smith, and make sure no one crosses those doors," I said firmly, pointing to the quarantine sign on the wall.

"Y-yes," he stammered, staring at the metal capsule disappearing into the entrance of the room at the end of the spacious laboratory. "Should we put on protective gear?" he asked, fear evident in his eyes. I shook my head in denial, smiling slightly.

"I think if there was something wrong, we would all be infected already," I said significantly, glancing at the last man disappearing into the door, his suit hastily and therefore incorrectly put on and twisted at the ankles. I took a deep breath and headed straight for quarantine. I unfastened my mask and slid it off my face as I approached the frozen "coffin."

Other men watched with curiosity tinged with fear in their eyes as I laid my hand on the grey, metal lid of the capsule. It was icy cold. I knew that the Emperor and the rest of my team were watching us from behind the Venetian glass, and there may have been more witnesses. I ran my hand along the entire length of the capsule, walking slowly around it. The silence and atmosphere of anticipation were unbearable. I furrowed my brow, hearing the nervous panting of the men amplified by the mask filter.

"Take them off like I did, or leave," I declared. Some of the brave ones quickly turned around and left the room, closing the secure door behind them. Two removed their masks and stayed. Good, they might come in handy. I nodded to the men approvingly.

"As I continued to run my hand over the cold metal, I came across a small protrusion, like a hinge... I crouched down to have the find at eye level and thus found another unevenness. Guided by speculations and curiosity, I pressed both at the same time. The lid of the capsule slowly opened, releasing a freezing vapor, then slid upward and to the side. I felt my heartbeat quicken and glanced at the Venetian mirror behind which our leader stood, but all I saw was my reflection. An uncertain reflection, that of a tired and resigned man.

I directed my gaze back to the capsule and realized that we were dealing with a large amount of, probably priceless, data. Disks containing data were arranged like books on a shelf. Sorted by dates starting from... impossible. The number beneath the first disk in the row was none other than two thousand fifty, which meant that the first data must have come from three hundred fifty years ago! I forgot about the whole world around me and leaned over the catalog. On the very edge, I noticed an engraved inscription in italics reading "Gaya 2050 -"

"Gaya?" I whispered. Gaya... from ancient Greek, the goddess of Earth. There was also the word "Earth" written on it. I understand. This must be a time capsule.