The Industrialist

Lance had his curt bow towards Jaqi’s mother.

"And who is this? This is a restricted area, Jaqi?" Her mother said but without the domineering tone, rather a delightful one.

"This is Lance Berkley, a Mech Teir 1," Jaqi introduced.

There was a reason why Jaqi did not disclose his residential sector. Maybe she knew how her mother would react. Rather, she mentioned Mech Tier because mostly, they were branded as Mid-classers.

"Nice to meet you," the mother extended an open palm.

Lance smiled, grasped lightly, and shook her hand. She gripped hard back and shook their handshake sternly and abruptly.

"Lance, this is my mother, Janet Leric. The AOD of all Homestead," Jaqi said. Discover stories with NovelBin.Côm

"That’s way too much, dear," Janet reacted. "So, this is your research partner?"

"Yeah, about our in vitro propagation project," Jaqi answered. "I just wanted him to show the overview of this project here in the Dome."

Her mother had a smooth lab coat, and had no evidence of stains, unlike the others while they tended the plants. She had a heart-shaped face with proportionate features. She was beautiful. Jaqi’s facial traits were mostly inclined to her genes.

During their handshake, Lance felt the softness of her hand but a firm grip – a combination of tenacity and grace.

"Come to my office both of you, I will prepare you some tea," Janet said and turned so smoothly with a stride so elegant. Her heels handled the smooth floor so confidently.

They went in an elevator that ascended them five stories high. The transparent glass wall of the elevator one could savor a magnificent scenery of greens in a metallic place. Water droplets, twinkled as they fell, and came from the racked plant beds as the sprinklers were activated creating a cool mist.

’There is still hope,’ Lance thought upon looking at it.

"So, Lance Berkley. I heard that family name before. Do you know Erik Berkley?" Janet asked.

"Ahm…I don’t know him. There are a lot of Berkleys in Bay City." He hesitated. "I’ve been asked a lot of the same question. Who is Erik Berkley? He seemed famous."

"Yes, mother. I heard the name too from Doctor Levi."

"Well…ah. Yes. I only heard rumors and some superficial stories."

Lance suspected these high-echelon positions in the City held vital information about his father. They knew the truth and everything was covered to the public by the Media.

These VIP personas also controlled the Media.

"Mister Tanaka of SAC asked me twice too during my defense presentation. But the name does not ring a bell," Lance answered.

The office door slid open immediately as they approached. They were not pressurized either, the same with the front door.

"It’s odd, Miss Janet," Lance said. "that your doors are not pressurized. All of the structures Inland have these airlock systems to maintain the freshness of air inside the confines of the establishment."

"A good observation, Lance Berkley." She tapped his shoulder, so gently that her touch was feather-like. "Jaqi, your friend here is quite something. I can see why you want him as your research partner. Well, this is just a recent discovery. The domes with plant nurseries in them do not need pressurized air any more for internal filtration. The plants are best substitutes for air filtration.

I don’t know about the Corporation if they are conducting research about this but according to the contamination counters, the level is even below the expected threshold. It’s close to zero. Well, depending on the volume of plants and the volume of air it filters."

His hypothesis about the Mystery woman’s weapon using Plant bombs was close. He witnessed the plant roots absorbed an Abominant flesh as a growth accelerator.

Such knowledge was yet a mystery and he intended to gain much information about the Mystery Woman. To look for her, Lance should travel again outside the walls and beyond.

’Lost Engineer, perhaps,’ Lance thought.

She took them inside her office. No. It’s a Zen garden.

The marbled floor from outside her office ended as they entered Janet’s office. It had no marbles inside but cobbled stones that maintained their roughness. They were patterned to create an Aztec floor design. Across her office stood ornamental plants, expensive Phoenix palms in clay pots lined up on both sides of a cobbled stone bridge.

And on both sides of that bridge held ponds with Pygmy Lilies floating, dancing against the streams created by the mini fountains.

There were no fish in it. All fishes were turned into Abominants. The contamination exponentially amplified in the bodies of water.

Curious, Lance stood at the edge of the pond, watching as seemingly living things swimming below the water’s ripples.

"Fishes?" Lance asked as he saw multi-colored beings wriggling in the water randomly.

"Ha. Ha. Ha. There are no fishes, Mr. Berkley. Only Aquatic Robots that designed to emulate that of a fish," Janet responded.

"Let’s settle here in my office. I want to know about you, Mr. Berkley." She invited.

"Mother, you said, you just wanna talk about how to approach the project."

"Yeah. That too. But, is it bad to talk to your friend and your future project partner? I mean, you talk about him a few times during our dinnertime."

"Mother!" Jaqi’s face flushed.

Lance only smiled at Janet and she matched his smile.

"Anything, Miss Janet," Lance responded as he sat on a swivel chair. Her table had an arching design, no corners, smooth metallic curves that formed her table. She sat across them.

"Don’t misinterpret, this is not an interrogation. I just wanted to know a little about my daughter’s partner." She said it again.

She was cautious and deliberately clarifying that what she was doing only information gathering, not some special classification treatment.

"Who are your parents? Are they living or working inland?" She asked.

"I am already orphaned, Miss Janet."

"Dear my, apologies. Jaqi dear, you should have given me a heads up," she said.

"Mother, you did not even tell me about this interrogation. I want to cut to chase about the project. Leave Lance out of your questioning." Jaqi retorted.

"Ok. Ok. Ok. Apologies, Mr. Berkley. One more thing, if you don’t mind."

Lance nodded.

"Where do you live right now? I mean, without your parents, it must be devastating. These times now, especially the crisis that we are living in, oh my. I can’t believe how the commoners survived."

Reading between the lines vaguely show condescending meaning. Especially rebel activities are more active now and frequent. The Media were relentless in twisting stories that negatively impact the rebels and fingers pointed to the latter of a dwindling economy.

"I am applying for an apartment in Hypervista, Miss Janet. Well, I do well in scrapping as a scrapper. That’s how I survive on my own, trading scraps Inland."

"Really? Can’t you see, Jaqi? This boy right here is setting a great example. Doing dirty jobs just to survive on his own."

Jaqi’s expression turned sour.

"Mother! Lance here is brilliant. He is one of a kind. I can say that he is better than me. I don’t know how he managed to rise to the ranks at a short duration. But just inspiring, that’s all," Jaqi praised.

"Well. Keep it up, Mr. Berkley. If you maintain that drive, you can achieve great lengths, just like Levi and his long-lost partner."

"Long lost partner?" Lance asked.

"Yeah. Erik Berkley, the one I asked if you knew him. He is one of the brightest, rising to the ranks for only a few years achieving Electronic Tier. Most people would take about a decade to achieve an Electronic rank. But Erik and Levi, they achieved it in only four years."

"Erik Berkley? Actually, I haven’t heard of him. What are his achievements?"

"Nobody knows about him now, but his designs were out of this world. Scientific fields outside of the Corporation’s grasp. Nobody knows where he learned about all those things. It seemed he had help from the outside."

"Outside?" Jaqi asked. Also, curious.

"Yes. The Lost Engineers. It’s only a myth but they were first generation Scientists that eloped from the surviving cities. Erik somehow tapped their knowledge and applied it in his inventions." She took a smoking teapot at a corner table and poured it into Lance and Jaqi’s cup. That aromatic smell had made Lance perturbed by its origin. Something healthy, he thought.

He was used to the horrendous smell of his environment, making it almost mundane for him.

"Mother. You haven’t told me about the Lost Engineers," Jaqi said, taking a sip from her cup.

"I am sharing it now, but they are somehow amplified stories of mindless people who wants to gossip. The story says that they lost hope in humanity and the pursuit of Earth’s renewal."

"Do you know them?" Lance asked. Probably she knew about their whereabouts.

"No. I don’t know one of them. But I have heard stories that they traveled to Arcanium Mountains, borders of Oroz Continent."

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