Chapter 104 - The Unveiling

The room went dark, all sources of light killed off. The crowd went on a round of applause and whistles. I gave a look around at the enthusiasm of the audience and somehow was hooked on it, I clapped with them. Grant grinned at me and did the same. Dr. Churchhill shouted while cupping his hands around his mouth.

The logo of Alteron Enterprises' iconic 'A' appeared on the giant screen at the back of the stage. Silence fell on the crowd as the logo morphed to a red dot and the name of the company faded in from the shadows. A spotlight shone on the sole figure standing on the large podium, he gave us his best professional smile. The image on the screen changed to a 3D image of a futuristic city, glimmering in the sunset with tall glass towers. Just like the few we saw in Texson, only here on a larger scale. Kumari R2 scale. A bridge with high-speed trains linked it to the continent. It shifted to factories producing all types of goods moving around by cyborgs to trucks then transferred to the trains for worldwide delivery. It listed the different technologies in development on the island. It ranged from transportation, entertainment, space exploration, pharmaceuticals, military, and many more. The image reverted back to the city. People happily walking in giant malls and shopping in the exclusive factory stores. The perfect city of the future. The video ended with the name of the city, Dyneapolis.

"We offer more than just a dream," said a female voice at the end of the feed. The crowd burst in loud applause and standing ovation. I watched with perplexity as my neighbor, a woman with short black hair sprung to her feet while clapping her hand above her head. I peeked at Grant and found him smiling then shrugged his shoulder. I laughed along with the collective happiness. Their state of euphoria seemed contagious and I couldn't help being moved.

"Thank you," bowed Dr. Laurell with his hands joint as if praying. "Thank you, very much," he smiled and waited for the crowd to calm down. The woman on the right sat down with a sigh. I turned back to the front, I didn't want her to catch me staring. It was a little odd. But then, everyone here must really like their jobs.

"Welcome everyone. I'm really happy to be here today with all the employees in sector 87. I know you went into a lot lately when we went on lockdown. I assure you it won't last. Soon you will be able to get news from your families and loved ones. For now, let jump right to the good news. What's why we are all here, right?" he waved at the audience. A couple of male voices shouted 'yeah!' to answer his question. Dr. Laurell grinned at them and walked to the middle of the stage.

"Today, I present you—" he paused staring ahead. "The technology that will move the world into the future," he graceful extended his arm and took a couple of steps back as a dancer. From the floor rose the holographic image of a slim white skyscr.a.p.er with a slim antenna at its peak. It rose higher till it reached the ceiling where the dr.a.p.ed red curtains hid the spotlights. I heard several gasped and exclamations. Grant took my hand in his and gave it a little squeeze. He was enjoying it too.

"This ladies and gentlemen is no mere structure," he pointed towards the tower. It rotated slowly then the white surface faced leaving only the outline of the building against the black screen. "This 58 floors of pure technology is linked to the sub-levels," he lowered his voice as if sharing a secret with us. "Project white tower will be implemented in the coming months. Delivery date next year in May. We have already received the funding and our construction factory is working around the clock to get everything ready. For the first time, we will construct something without solely with raw materials produced on his very island," he grinned and nodded. A group at in the audience stood up and clapped. Dr. Laurell waved his index at them. He waited for the group to settle down to continue. "Yes, thanks to the team who has developed a large scale printer to do so, using a composite develop here in this very sector," more applause went on.

The image on the tower faded and the host came to stand in the middle of the stage once again. He looked up and smile. The room went silent and the lights dimmed.

"What I'm about to share with you," his face went from happy to serious. "What I'm about to share with you," he repeated to see if we were paying attention. "Is the most revolutionary form of energy ever invented. Back in 2020 when the first E3 stations were commercialized, it opened gates to develop the robotic industries. And now, my dear friends," he lets his gaze sway on the front rows.

"I give you White Energy," he rolled on the last words. A low murmur went around in the room. Dr. Laurell frenetically shook his head making his white hair fall on his forehead. "This energy based on the tungsten rings technology will kill E3 energies. With one tower it can power our entire island with wireless clean energy. All our cyborgs and machines will beneficiate from free energy 24/7. Thus, the need to recharge is complete scrapped. Imagine, that all lights, all the machines, all technologies will never go offline. The thought of an off button a thing of the past," he laughed. The room was quiet. The grave kind of silence. I gave a quick glance at Grant. His eyes were fixed on the podium.

"Endless free energy without waste," smiled Dr. Laurell. The spotlights light up the whole room, people shifted in their seats. He clapped his hands together.

"People our tower will come online in less than 5 months. This is not a dream anymore. We've pasted it on a small scale and it makes wonders. This was something my late father, spent years to develop. This project was dear to his heart. Unfortunately, he wouldn't see it come to life and I'm proud that I can raise our legacy to such levels. The dream of my Grandfather saw the light when his island emerged from those treacherous seas in the international waters, away from the greedy hands of politicians. Dyneapolis is the city of the future, thanks to the white energy to lit it as a beacon in the night sky," the crowd go to their feet and clapped like there was no tomorrow. And somehow, there may really be no tomorrow as 'war' was at our gates.