The shuttle's hum faded, replaced by the North Sea's relentless roar as Dianne Scholz stepped onto Granitz's rocky shore. The sea breezes hit on her skin and the warm sunlight gave a small heat to her body. The strong wind almost blew her hat. Her long purple hair was swaying. This place was not like on the mainland nor her homeland in Caribia. It was much colder and isolated.
Her watch glowed — 11:02 pm. Markus's message flashed: Go genius. She touched her married ring, its worn band steadying her nerves. A driver in an FRI Institute jacket waited, his nod brisk.
"Luggage will be delivered at your apartment" he said, eyes on the road as the van sped toward the H-shaped institute, stark against the cliffs. On her right, the sea crashed against rocky beaches, vast and untamed. To her left, sparse land gave way to the living area's low buildings, dwarfed by the H-shaped institute looming ahead.
While looking out through the window, Dianne recalled how difficult it was to get a clearance into this island. One day she received an email from the FRI, stating that her application on an AI model on biomechanical neurons was impressive, and wanted to offer a position for FRI's certain project. She was crazy as her heart beat fast. "The Reich's national institute!!" she murmured. She checked carefully that the email was not a scam. Then, without any hesitations, she accepted the position and after a few minutes an acceptance letter, together with a preparation protocol, was sent to her. She had only a few weeks before the start date, to get a clearance and vaccinations. But she managed to get it done. Her husband was so excited when she told him though the two were separated due to his work. She texted to her daughter too, following with a quick and short reply message "congrats! Mom". The car had reached the front gate and the driver showed his license, then a quick scan from an automated robotic arm. The car then drove into the main entrance of the FRI building.
At the entrance, a woman stood awaiting her arrival. Her fair skin and long blonde hair framed striking blue eyes, a crisp blazer offset by a rocket-shaped pin.
"Dr. Feta is on a break, I'm here in her place," the woman said, her voice calm, offering a handshake.
"I'm Elena Ornstein, chief scientist. Welcome, Dr. Scholz." Dianne met her gaze, catching Elena's quick glance at the military guards nearby. "Call me, Elena." she added.
"We run a tight ship," Elena added, a faint smile softening her formality. The gates hissed open, cameras blinking red like unblinking eyes.
She followed Elena into the institute's right wing. The air was sterile, humming with the faint whine of machinery. Elena led her through a glass-walled atrium, the four-story building divided into three units: Research, Engineering, and Communal. "You're in Engineering, on this right wing," Elena explained, her tone professional but warm. "Research is on the left wing, and Communal—canteen, gym, meeting rooms—sits in the middle."
The engineering unit buzzed with activity, even at this hour. Labs lined the corridor, their glass doors revealing robotic arms and holographic displays. Dianne's pulse quickened—her kind of playground. Elena introduced her to a handful of colleagues, engineers in lab coats who offered polite nods but guarded smiles. "This is your team," Elena said, gesturing to a group calibrating a motion sensor. A wiry man shook her hand, his grip firm but brief. "We are excited to work with you! We are impressed by your motion modeling," he said, eyes appraising. "We'll put that to use." Dianne nodded, sensing the team's excitement
According to Elena, Dr. Feta, her boss, was currently on her duties in the mainland. She did not know much more detail but her team did not look pleasant when mentioning about Feta.
It was nearly noon. After spending time touring over the right wing, Elena guided her up a sleek staircase to the second floor, where the Communal unit housed the canteen, its glass walls overlooking the North Sea. a vast space between the right and left wings, its size startling for an isolated island. Tables stretched in neat rows, flanked by a buffet zone, a pizza counter, and a salad bar. "Menu changes daily," Elena said, grabbing a tuna Caesar salad. Dianne followed suit, the familiar choice calming her lingering tension from the boat trip.
The canteen was quiet, its size dwarfing the sparse crowd.
"It's quieter than I expected here." Dianne expressed her curiosity.
"We're early," Elena said, her voice steady. "It'll get crowded soon."
"We've a lot of people during lunch including military staff," Elena added, nodding toward a group of fatigues at a far table.
Dianne scanned the room, her AI training kicking in, cataloging details: the security cameras sweeping slowly.
As they chose a table, Dianne's eyes caught a man sitting alone at a counter, short-haired, in a deep blue shirt, gazing at the sea while eating. Elena's gaze followed, her blue eyes lighting with a quiet joy, a smile tugging at her lips. Dianne's instincts flared—someone she knows well. Elena led them to his table, her tone shifting to a casual, musing warmth, unlike the formality with colleagues.
"Pierre, meet our new star," she said, gesturing to Dianne.
It turned out that the man was the head of this institute – Pierre Therma, or the acting chief of FRI. He still looked young. What was surprising was that he spent only three years from newbie to the acting chief, even surpassing Elena.
Although he was a chief, the atmosphere or the way he talked was very casual, humorous. The chemistry between Elena and him was very relaxing and friendly. From their conversation, Dianne saw that he was pretty much composed.
After a small introduction to Pierre, Elena and Dianne sat at a nearby table with a Sea view, the waves a restless backdrop. Dianne picked at her salad, her tension easing slightly in the group's chatter. As time passed by, more colleagues joined—engineers and researchers, mostly men. Dianne spotted their eyes lingering on Elena. Elena was like a magnet, her laughter drawing smiles. Despite those men's eyes, Dianne noticed Elena's tone remained calm, steady, unlike the lively spark with Pierre.
What's between them? Dianne wondered,
They had finished their lunch. From a normal conversation, the group's conversation turned to projects,
"What are you working on Elena?" Dianne asked. Elena explained steadily about her project on developing a method for large-scale cryogenic preservations. "That is amazing" Dianne added. "With your method, we can expand the longevity of the preserved lifeform, basically, we can preserve our body" Dianne continued with her eyes glowing. "It is still under development. Pierre and I had a theory recently, but it was only for a small scale." Elena added, her face turned red when mentioning Pierre.
Elena leaned in, her voice soft. "We're throwing a welcome party for you tomorrow at noon". Elena's smile was warm. Dianne nodded, her mind racing on the upcoming party.