Out of Science Fiction
69...
68...
67...
...
3...
2...
1.
The seemingly endless wait for the elevator to come down from floor 69th was finally over. During that time, however, none of them are available to patiently wait for the elevator.
Because, on their way to the elevator, Neil's team, which included himself, Chad, and Saiko, encountered a terrorist who was walking in the opposite direction.
Neil sneaked behind the terrorist and beat the shit out of him, knocking him unconscious, before dragging him to somewhere dark and out of sight, where Neil looted him, taking his suit and weapons and giving them to Chad.
While Chad changes his suit and Neil finds a way to tape the terrorist's mouth and tie him up, Saiko checks the elevator and presses the UP button.
As a result, the time it takes the elevator to descend from the 69th floor is sufficient for them to complete their task.
However, they are unsure whether it is safe, so Neil stood in front of the elevator door as it opened, ready to engage if a terrorist was inside.
To their surprise, it was empty, so they simply went inside.
"That's unexpectedly easy." Chad commented.
"Don't put your guard down, there will be more of them up there when the elevator gets moving." Neil replied.
When they are ready, Neil presses the number 86, and the elevator starts moving.
However, they were also expecting something else to happen. The elevator suddenly darkens, but the elevator's ceiling brightens because it is also a digital screen, and the screen plays a video as the elevator moves.
The video is a timelapse of how the Empire State Building was built from the ground up, with the voice of a man saying something like, "Welcome to the most famous building, and you get to see it built..."
It was an introduction video for the building's top floor for tourists; every elevator in the Empire State that can transport people up to the 86th floor has a digital screen that displays this introduction video every time.
Neil's team was not surprised, as this was not their first visit here, but they did think it was strange that the terrorist did not bother to turn off this function at all.
36...
37...
38...
While they think about this, the elevator continued to rise, and they will soon be on the 86th floor. At least, that's what they believed.
"What the!?"
The elevator comes to a sudden stop, causing the lights to flicker and the ceiling's digital screen to freeze mid-video. It halted at a high floor, and the truth was clear to them that someone, on that floor, has pressed the button.
As the elevator doors are about to slide open, three of them assumed their positions, changing into combat-ready poses. Their hearts were pounding like crazy in their chests as they braced themselves for whatever lay ahead.
Rrmmm... Ting!
The elevator doors slowly opened, revealing whoever had been waiting outside.
A man as tall as the elevator itself stands silently in front of them, his aura combined with the black outfit on his body confirming their worst fears, he was a terrorist.
Despite this, however, Neil has not decided to act yet.
Unlike other terrorists where their noses, eyes, fingers, and sometimes even their hair are exposed when they wear the suit, this man's entire body, however, is hidden behind millimeters thick of fabric.
He wears full-coverage gloves, one-way transparent glasses, and even has his nose wrapped so that he is breathable but invisible to others. Despite being completely covered, they can tell this terrorist is a man because of his standing pose, style, and Neil's identical height.
No one knows why he covers his entire body just to hide his identity; one possibility is that he is someone very important and special that no one, not even terrorists, should know about.
It's also possible that he's hiding his appearance due to a serious health issue, such as a burn, but no one can say for sure.
The mystery about his appearance and real identity creates a sense of intrigue and unease, leaving everyone fascinated but cautious.
But no matter what they think of him, this man surely shows no signs of hostility towards them, so in a second of considering, Neil has decided...
'I don't want to cause any unnecessary casualty, and this man seems friendly enough tho... well... let's hope this doesn't turn bad.'
To spread out and let him in.
Chad and Saiko were shocked at first, but as they understand Neil's decision, they did the same.
The mysterious man was now one of four people in the elevator. He pressed a button for a floor above, somewhere in the 1950s.
As the elevator doors closed and began moving upwards, the group stood in awkward silence. They were all aware that any sudden movements or words could alert the mysterious man, causing him to suspect them.
But to their surprise, this mysterious terrorist isn't like any other loudmouth one, he was silent, he was smooth, and acted very professional, didn't say a single word throughout the ride, and not even make eye contact with them.
The aura this man emanates causes them to feel as if he's a robot, doing only what he was programmed to do, nothing else matters.
Chad, on the other hand, felt something familiar about him, his body smell and size, even his standing pose remind him of someone he knows, but he couldn't remember who, or it could just be a coincidence, that this guy is just a stranger who feels similar to someone close to him.
Regardless of the risk, Chad was curious to find out who this guy was, so he looked around his body for clues that might be useful, but other than the fragrance, body pose, and structure, the suits completely covered his appearance.
And then the elevator stopped at the floor where the man wanted to go; he stepped outside and left as if he had never met them; Chad was disappointed that he could not learn more about the man, while Neil and Saiko were relieved.
Without further ado, they resume their ascent to the top floor.
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"Dude! Why are we even out here? In this cold dark night on the top of the damn building?!"
"In case you forget, the terrorists promised us the reward of 20 grand for each of us just to sit here and watch over whatever they built out there."
Two terrorists are sitting on the top floor of the Empire State Building, watching over the force field machine, and have each other as companions in this eerie, chilling night.
"Bruh, I know this is just a part of the contract, but aren't we Americans? Should we not be working for the Communists?"
"Are you sure these terrorists are the Communists?"
"Isn't it obvious? The flags they brought, the language they spoke, and even one of them just blatantly told me that they were ordered by Dmitri! The goddamn President of the Soviet Union! We are supposed to be against them!"
"Yeah I know, I thought about this too, but do you realize that patriotism cannot feed you and your family? I have a mom and a sibling to take care of. Besides, unlike them, we don't kill or harm anyone, we just simply sit down here and make sure no one gets up."
"Yeah but..."
"Come on man! It's not like it's the end of the world if we do this or something, after this, the country would just automatically heal itself after a while, like 9/11 or some other wars. Besides, it's 20 grand! Even if we don't do this, somebody else will, why do we risk the chance of changing our own lives just because of feeling guilty?"
"I guess you are right..."
...
"What the?!"
"Who the hell are you-"
...
"Neil! You're back!"
"Yeah, there were 2 terrorists out there, and I knocked them off. We are fine now. Let's go."
They finally made it to the top floor using the elevator a few minutes earlier, but Neil told Chad and Saiko not to come out yet because he needed to check if it was safe to do so.
And that's exactly what he did: he sneaked around and behind the two terrorists who were previously chatting and weren't paying attention, and when the opportunity came up, he jumped out and did some movement to knock them out.
Then he returned to the elevator and told the other two to move.
"Remember to keep quiet."
Saiko and Chad move cautiously, while Neil walks relaxedly, knowing that there are no other terrorists on this floor, despite the fact that all of the floor's lights are turned off.
At last, they have arrived at their destination, as they step outside the open air through the glass door, the cold wind blowing through, the temperature of the night, and the atmosphere at this altitude give them chills to the bone.
But something feels off.
'Why is it so bright out here when the entire floor is all lights out?' Chad wondered.
And he also realizes instantly what is shining across the entire ground of the top floor, and he also knows that it is the thing that they were looking for.
He turns around and looks up.
'Hooooleeee Shit.'
Chad couldn't believe what he was seeing. The forcefield machine... was gigantic, towering above their current floor.
The pillar holding the machine was twice the length of a school bus, and the bright blue ray shooting from its tip reached so far into the sky that they couldn't see where it ended.
The neon light emitted by the ray was incredible, casting an eerie blue glow over the entire area. The moonlight gave the scene an astral quality, illuminating the machine and casting deep shadows around it.
It was like something out of a science fiction movie, and Chad was in awe. He stood there, mesmerized by the magnificent, majestic, and seductive blue ray for a few moments, unable to move. The forcefield machine was even more incredible up close than he had imagined.
"Come on, we don't have time to surprise."
Suddenly, Neil's voice abruptly broke through Chad's state of hypnosis, bringing him back to reality. Neil reminded him of why they were here and the importance of their mission.
"Yeah sure sure!"
Chad snapped back into action, his mind refocused on the task. Since the forcefield machine was placed above their floor, so he quickly located the ladder and climbed up, with Saiko behind.
After climbing the ladder, the first thing they saw was a cylindrical giant pillar made of metals and glass; through the glass, he could see what was inside the pillar.
The pillar turned out to be a tank full of water inside, with something alienic in the middle that Chad had never seen before. It appears to be a cubic block of metals linked with some kind of large tube above it, and it emits blue light identical to the color of the blue ray that shoots into the sky, resembling Cherenkov Radiation.
Even from a distance, he could feel the shaking and intense heat radiating from that "block of metals."
And Chad immediately understands that those "blocks of metal" are the real forcefield machine that they seek; he was shocked to see that the machine did not look like something made by humans; it was sharp, rigid, and compact, unlike any things built in history.
The forcefield was already "out of this world" in the first place, and seeing the machine from which it originated gave him more reasons to believe that everything was created... by another, technologically superior species.
But he doesn't have time to think about it because his job here is to find a way to destroy this thing, not to admire it. So, as intended, he takes a small notebook and a pen from his pocket and walks around the machine to observe it.
"Saiko, can you observe and analyze the structure of the pillar?"
He also didn't forget to let Saiko help him.
When Neil hears Chad and Saiko discussing their mission, he confirms that they are doing their job and decides to leave the floor to go downstairs.
He wanted to conduct a recon in the building while waiting for Chad to finish his research, as well as to ensure that no one came up here and disturbs him.
So Neil walks away silently, leaving behind two children who are focused on their profession.
-------------SMALL NOTES-------------
If you're having trouble imagining, try searching Google for "Science Fiction Force Field" and "Top of the Empire State" to get an idea of what this machine looks like.
And get ready for the next chapter, where Chad's true enemy will be revealed, the one who will make him suffer and miserable for the rest of his life. (Or for the rest of the novel)