Chapter 267. Causality
"Have you ever seen something as unscientific as this?" the man asked while holding up a dog missing half of its body. The dog's lower half was missing, but it moved freely, seemingly unfazed by its missing half. It was even happily licking its owner's hand.
"Good boy, good boy. Go ahead and play by yourself," the man said while ruffling the dog's ears. The dog left the camera's viewpoint, and the man stared intently into the camera with a grim look.
"That was one of the projects I'm overseeing—a dog missing half of its body. You can see and feel its other half, but we can't find its missing half, regardless of which testing method we used to find it.
"Despite our best efforts, we truly can't figure out how the dog is still alive, or if this phenomenon is natural in this subterranean seascape. It felt like that appearance of existences like that is to trample on what we believe is scientific."
"We call them projects. Not all projects are as harmless as the half-dog you've seen just now. Some are extremely dangerous, wherein one mistake can lead to a calamity.
"The only thing that we can do about it is to create islands on the Subterranean Sea for the sake of containing them for as long as possible.
"Unfortunately, there are too many of them. More of them are popping up as we speak, and our containment facilities are getting overwhelmed.
"For the sake of culling their numbers, the headquarters decided to conduct the Project Cross-Execution Experiment, but the results weren't as good as we had imagined.
"Some of the smarter projects had even banded together to revolt, causing widespread chaos."
The man seemed tired after the long monologue. His breathing grew labored as he looked down at the ground with his head lowered.
The man's brief respite gave Charles and the rest some time to breathe as well.
Meanwhile, Cocci and the others revealed looks of bewilderment toward the man's monologue. They had no idea what he was talking about, but Charles was different. His mind started racing upon realizing that his assumptions were right.
Laesto's ancestors were indeed Foundation staff members, and it explained the existence of Laesto's tablet.
Just then, the man continued speaking, "I'm sure you're thinking that I'm worried about the dangers of these projects, but no, you're wrong. I'm worried about humanity, as our downfall has always been brought upon by our arrogance.
"Soon after the failure of the Project Cross-Execution Experiment, Dr. K9 and his team started exploiting the projects similar to how humanity exploited fire, electricity, and nuclear power.
"At first, I thought it was just hearsay, but Dr. K9 had actually succeeded. The advent of his Dawn One and Dawn Two had completely upended everyone's imagination.
"I took a peek at Dr. K9's project plan, and the way he uses the projects is extremely primitive. It's as primitive as the prehistoric humans using fire to roast meat.
"However, the primitive approach he had taken had allowed his Experiment Dawn to provide the Foundation with unlimited energy..." the man trailed off. A hysterical look suffused the man's face as he shouted, "And that's not a good thing!"
"As scientists, we must face the unknown with awe and respect, and we must seek to uncover what truths lie in the unknown to the best of our abilities! Exploiting those things without having a complete understanding of them is akin to giving a toddler a gun to play with!" the man roared and hung his head once more.
He took a moment to catch his breath before continuing. "Fortunately, my mentor and his colleagues got into a fierce argument, and the Foundation ultimately decided not to send these dangerous projects to the surface.
"They decided to observe it for a period of ten years.
"However, restrictions often do not quell human desire. One day, my mentor told me that Dr. K9 and his team were working on something even more dangerous in the Dark Abyssal Trench.
"My clearance wasn't high enough, so he couldn't tell me anything. However, the intense fear I saw in my mentor—Mentor E5's eyes was something I couldn't possibly forget."
The man went silent for a long time. Eventually, the man's expression turned to that of anguish as he continued speaking. "I predicted that the Foundation's days are numbered.
"You must find it absurd that a scientist like me believes in predictions, but 177 had granted me the ability to see the future. It had even helped me save my son from being electrocuted."
The video trembled as the man picked up the tablet and started walking away.
"If my predictions turn out to be incorrect, it would be for the best. I hope that I'm wrong. I've already submitted an application to return to the surface along with my family, but the earliest that we'll get to return to the surface is in three years.
"I'm willing to give up everything for the Foundation, but my wife and son aren't the same. I'll let them leave the island and tell them to return after three years. I want them out of harm's way if an accident were to happen before the three years are up."
The video ended there, and a deafening silence filled the room. Laesto gulped, and his trembling hand reached out to tap on the next video.
The video played, showing the face of a young boy who seemed to be seven to eight years of age. The video was shaky; it seemed that the tablet was too heavy for the young boy to hold steadily.
Tears were streaming down the frightened young boy's face.
"Dad, is that you? Dad, please pick up the phone! The sun in the sky fell down and crashed into the sea, and Mom has disappeared! I'm scared... I'm really scared. Sob!"
Crackle!
A loud crackling noise started the young boy and had him shrieking in terror.
The video tumbled wildly until it came to a standstill when the tablet fell to the ground. The beige-colored shoes of the young boy appeared briefly on the video before the tablet was picked up by a familiar face.
It was Tobba—the Narwhale's Navigator. His crazed demeanor was nowhere to be found, and his eyes were as lucid as just about anyone. The wailing young boy was in his arms as he carried the tablet outside.
"Charles, beware of the Pope. Don't let him fool you. I've seen scenes more horrible than this calamity, and I hope that what I've seen does not end up happening," Tobba said.
A chill ran down Charles' spine. Tobba had just addressed him despite the gap of centuries between them. Tobba seemed like he was talking to someone over a video call rather than speaking to himself in a recording.
"You can see me?" Charles unknowingly blurted out.
"Of course, I can. Anyway, I have to go. I need to get this kid out of here. Something's coming from underneath the waters, and this island is about to sink," Tobba replied.
Hearing that, Charles shoved Cocci aside and grabbed the tablet. A look of urgency took over his face as he cried out to the Tobba in the video, "Just who the hell are you?!"
"Who else could I be? I'm Tobba, and I'm the Navigator of the Narwhale. You know we're short of time here, but you actually decided to ask me that?"
"What's happening over there? Does it have anything to do with God Fhtagn? What about the surface? Has God Fhtagn invaded the surface?!
"No more questions. Knowing too much isn't necessarily a good thing. It's all because I knew so much that I went crazy. I just want you to remember what I said—beware of the Pope."
Tobba's face froze just then as a replay button appeared on the screen. Clearly, the recording had ended right there and then.
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