All Things I've Done To Save You

Machine Messiah

As he was heading back home in his car, Made Oka decided to join the search-and-rescue team after his wife, Ratna persuaded and kind of pushed him into it.

“Honey,” persuaded Ratna when they finally came back to and again left ChronoTours building. “Just don’t regard Mr. Reign, but please think of Carol and Suranto. We also have Arnie, right? Just think, how would we react if it’s our daughter who went missing?”

Made was reminded again of his daughter who had just grown into a teenager, so his heart melted. Anyway, they knew Amanda since she was little too.

He reminisced about when they were just married and didn’t have a child yet. At that time they still lived in Los Angeles, California, and were neighbors with Suranto’s family. So, they frequently went to Suranto’s house to help them nurse Amanda.

After Made quit Mr. Reign’s employment, he was recruited by Tunnel Education and continued the ChronoTours time travel ride project in Tunnel. However, the patent right still belonged to Reign, Made Oka, and Marwan, so each could develop versions of their own.

In addition, the Tunnel Education Board of Stock Holders had Marx Reign’s name in it as a Commissary. Marx bought a vast amount of Tunnel stock and became one of the major stakeholders in the company just as Made began his employment there. So, in other words, Made Oka still worked for Reign, indirectly.

Although so, the ties between Made Oka’s family and Suranto’s family remained unchanged. They were still in mutual contact and followed the growth and improvements of each other’s daughters.

==oOo==

The next day, Made contacted Marx Reign himself and stated his willingness to help them and to join the search and rescue team to go to the Proto Ancient Egypt Age to search for Amanda and to bring her back home. However, Made had a condition that a friend must come with him.

“He is our good, old friend.”

Mr. Reign gave his permission without asking who and why.

Made Oka called his boss, Richard in Tunnel that he was on leave, starting today. Marx Reign as Commissary has personally contacted Richard as head of a subsidiary company and explained that InterTime must “borrow” Made Oka for an urgent job. As a result, Made didn’t need to make up excuses because Richard already knew about it and has given his consent.

Not long after that, Suranto and his wife come to pick Made in his house. A feeling of gratitude and relief was shown in Suranto and Caroline on meeting him. After a quick chit-chat with Ratna, the couple took Made to InterTime Research Center in Cianjur by his luxury van like yesterday.

Ratna and Arnie didn’t go with them, so they let Made go in tears, telling the head of the family then and again to be very, very careful in the so-called extremely dangerous place and time. The wife and daughter would stay at home, awaiting good news.

When Made Oka arrived at InterTime, the search and rescue team accompanying him has gathered there. Made came with Marwan Batubara. The team wasn’t only consisted of scientists, there were several armed people too.

“Who are they?” Made asked, seeing the advanced and sophisticated weaponry, as though they were going to the battlefield. “What use are weapons, even explosives, and firearms?”

“Don’t worry,” Marx Reign answered. “It’s insurance, in case they are needed.”

Although Reign was an elderly man, he still got his vigor. His tall figure has long been leaning on the walking stick in his left hand to support his weight when walking.

Made didn’t have to re-introduce Marwan to Mr. Reign because both of them have been acquainted with each other since Made and Marwan worked for Reign Foundation. However, they surely were not on good terms now.

It was lucky for Made to successfully made Marwan go with him. That was because he and Marwan were good friends since they studied for their Doctorate in the USA, and the time machine was invented by them both. The reason for their parting ways was, after his quarrel with Marx Reign, Marwan chose to return as a professor and an academician in a well-known college in Jakarta.

Marwan has personally admitted from time to time that he owed much to Made Oka, who helped and supported him financially. That was why, despite his friend’s reluctance, Made talked Marwan into this mission eventually.

“Marwan will be a great help in Proto-Ancient Egypt because he knows much about the society and the civilization in that Old World Age. So, with him coming along, our chances to find Amanda will be very significantly higher.”

Reign interrupted his ex-business partner’s small talk. “I don’t mind at all,” he said. “The most important thing is to find Amanda and to bring her back home safe and sound.”

Made didn’t want to prolong the matter either. But, there were several things that he didn’t understand and he questioned Mr. Reign about them. Made didn’t understand what was the use of armed men who joined in this search. Moreover, there was a young man among the ranks of team members.

“By the way, who is that young man?” Marwan asked when he spotted a young one among the ranks of grown-ups.

“Oh, he’s Herman, Amanda’s boyfriend,” said the old man who was still quite adroit. “He too is on vacation from his study in Germany.”

Marwan viewed the young man as being full of spirit and very curious, if not too desperate. Herman always moved to and fro, observing many things and asking many questions.

Reign explained that the young man was a mix between German and Indonesian. He was not too tall, but his curly hair added to his handsome and somewhat masculine air.

“Mr. Reign,” retorted Made Oka, “I can understand if an armed squad joins us in this mission. Maybe you think this journey is dangerous. But, whatever the reason is, a young civilian man will be a hindrance to us and too much danger to himself in this combat potential mission.”

“Oh, come on, Made Oka. He insisted to come, it’s his girlfriend in there, you know. We were all young once, so please be considerate. Such a pity, he has come all the way here from Germany. I’ll take full responsibility for him.”

After Marx Reign gave his guarantee, finally Made loosened up and didn’t insist anymore. Made then climbed the time machine platform to test whether this contraption was ready or not.

Just then, Bill Adkinson, the Commander in InterTime Mission Squad came near Made. “Mr. Made Oka, here’s the Tempus Fugit. Please examine it first,” said he with a distinct Scottish accent. He was in command of all armed people in the squad and the co-leader of the whole team.

Made received the gadget given to him. It was a cellular phone-like gadget with a touch screen instead of the old-fashioned keyboard buttons. And then he inspected the setting on that gadget at once.

Just then Herman who was just passing by asked, “What is it?” It was a serious question from the tone of his voice.

“This is Tempus Fugit, its function is to lock on to the time and space of our chosen destination,” answered Bill, who became friends with that young lad already. “It’s like a remote control panel of the time machine, the most important equipment of them all. That’s all I know, laddie.”

Meanwhile, Made Oka continued his inspection and pressed a few buttons on the touch screen. The menu displayed on the monitor showed the text and numerals of the time and place of their destination.

“Is the destination setting locked too, Mr. Bill?”

“Yes, Sir,” said the Mission Commander.

“Who will hold the Tempus Fugit? Me or you?”

“Go ahead and keep it, Sir. I already got one more as a spare.”

Made, the team leader nodded.

“Nobody can guarantee whether we’ll come back in about the same time as we have departed, or whether we’ll come back in one piece, although the time between our departure and arrival will be about a fracture of seconds,” Made continued. “So, let me hold on to this time-space location pinpoint device.”

Mr. Bill was one of the more silent members of the lot and only obeyed Made’s instructions. He then moved back and joined two other scientists on the time machine platform.

Judging from his whole attire, rather than a commander, Bill Adkinson was more suitable as a wild duck hunter in the prairies of Utah, USA. Half of his cheeks were covered by bushy sideburns that were connected with a thick mustache and without a beard. His sunglasses and hunter hat, plus a vest with many pockets strengthened this stylish man’s impression and identity.

The InterTime in-house scientists served as navigators of the time machine. The three of them sat and controlled the machines that were already turned on and has been heating up. It was a matter of time before it was ready.

During that waiting time, Herman came to talk to Marwan and Made Oka.

“Good day, Mr. Marwan. I’m Herman Schweinsteiger-Nagarya. I’m studying physics and I have read lots of your works in science journals...”

Seeing the young man extending his hand, Marwan shook it. But Made Oka didn’t follow suit. Made Oka didn’t want to have anything to do with this insolent young man, according to his judgment on the way he talked to him and Bill earlier.

“I already knew that both of you invented this time machine by utilizing the non-particle, anti-matter nature of neutrinos,” said Herman to Marwan. “But how does it work? Until today, no scientist can capture and harness free neutrinos, although that anti-matter is everywhere in this universe.”

Hearing that question, Marwan stared at Herman’s face, while Made Oka only smiled. Marwan was as though seeing the young version of himself in Herman who was full of curiosity, so he didn’t mind giving his answer.

“Oh, you’re a physics student, right? Okay, so you surely understand the concept of atoms,” Marwan explained. “The team of scientists led by me and Mr. Made here managed to correct the records and statements we know that neutrino is a particle. We got a fact that besides it has no mass and can’t be affected by gravity, the neutrino is a non-particle. And no matter can capture and harness it, except by the aid of a strong electromagnetic field which can trap and read neutrinos in a fracture of milliseconds.”

“Yes, I’m no stranger to this concept,” said Herman. “And I also read in your article that the original atom, hydrogen has a bar of magnet or proton which rotates, encircled with a neutron which was inducted into electrons or positrons. That’s why only the proton can be called a particle, while electrons or positrons are not particles, but non-particle, anti-matter voids.

Of course, if this is what you mean, it means you two have corrected Bohr and Rutherford’s atomic model. You two even corrected the most sophisticated one, that is the quantum mechanical atomic model.”

This time Marwan asked Made Oka to give his response. “It was Mr. Made who invented the machine that can identify this subatom as a non-particle. So, I’ll let him explain things from that point.”

Made also nodded while postponing his last-minute panel inspection. “That’s right, and that means the neutrino is emitted in the nuclear fusion and filled every time and space gap in this universe. This anti-matter was previously hunted by scientists because of its mysterious nature.

And so, we reutilize this neutrino for the time machine. Because it’s a non-particle, a neutrino can penetrate everything, even time and space. It has no weight, no dimension, and no duration whatsoever. We also found out that the neutrino records every event in the universe since its initial creation. And don’t forget, although I designed the machine, it is based on Mr. Marwan’s concept.”

Herman clicked his lips in awe on hearing the whole explanation.

“So that’s the principle of the time machine, utilizing neutrinos. This machine traces the track records in every neutrino, so people can see records from the past. And now we can either bring the past into our present time or bring ourselves to the world in the past, physically,” Herman concluded. “Thank you, Mr. Marwan and Mr. Made Oka, now I understand.”