Anne and Seren stood in front of two large crystalline doors, looking at each other in anticipation. "Ready?" Seren gave Anne a warm smile.
"Why is Dr. Solarys even summoning us, the last time we spoke to him was..." Anne trailed off.
"He told us that he had something important to show us, remember?"
"Yeah, but what could he possibly have to tell us? It's been so long since the two of us have spoken to each other." Anne said, fiddling with the bracelet on her arm.
"Only one way to find out. Come on, let's go."
The two of them opened the doors, revealing an elaborate laboratory. At the far end of the room, stood a man in a white lab coat. He was bald and had a scar on his left cheek.
"Good morning, Anne, Seren. Please, come in." Dr. Solarys said, waving the two of them over.
"Good morning Dr. Solarys, how have you been?" Anne asked.
"I've been doing well, thank you. How are you two?"
"We're great! It's been a long time since we last saw you. So, what was it that you wanted to show us?" Seren asked, curious.
"Right, to the point." Dr. Solarys nervously chuckled. "Well to put it bluntly, you all are aware that the goal of NESU is to maintain balance in the constant, correct?"
"Yeah, but what does that have to do with us?" Anne asked.
"I need the two of you to make the journey over to Earth, it seems... something might be wrong with the planet."
"What do you mean, Dr. Solarys?" Seren asked, concerned.
"I'm not sure, but it's something that needs to be investigated. The readings from Earth have been non-existent and the vibrations that have been coming off of the planet have been quite... ominous."
"What kind of vibrations?" Anne asked, curious.
Dr. Solarys hesitated for a moment, as if trying to find the right words. "I'm not sure yet, it's hard to explain. But the vibrations have been very intense. We don't know what it means."
Anne and Seren looked at each other, not knowing what to make of the situation.
"So, when do we leave?" Seren asked.
"Immediately."
"Wait, we're going now?" Anne asked, surprised.
"Yes. You have been given a mission, and I expect you to carry it out. Now go, I have preparations to make." Dr. Solarys said, dismissively turning his back on the two of them.
"You've given us little information to work with doctor, from what I can tell this might be a dangerous mission that us scholars won't be able to handle ourselves." Anne explained, a drop of sweat rolling down her forehead.
"That's the reason why the two of you are the best choice for this mission. You will report back to me as soon as you are able. Do not fail me." He said, sternly.
Seren furrowed his eyebrows, his temper beginning to get the best of him; but, before he was able to say anything, Anne stopped him.
"Oh and one more thing before you leave, the Earth has a bigger role in this constant that you could ever imagine, I'm sending you two because you are the two brightest individuals in Elyndra who I hope will take my place in NESU."
"Take your place? But why would you want to-" Anne started, but was interrupted.
"You'll have all the time you need for questions later." Dr. Solarys said, dismissively waving his hand.
Anne and Seren both nodded and turned to leave. Before they could get very far, Dr. Solarys called out to them.
"And, Anne, Seren... If something happens to the two of you, please know that I'm proud of the both of you."
Both Seren and Anne turned to look at the doctor in surprise. "What do you mean, Doctor?"
Dr. Solarys looked at the two of them. "Just promise me that you'll be careful, and that you'll look out for each other."
Anne and Seren nodded. "We promise, Doctor." Seren replied.
"Very well, now hurry, I have another meeting with the council to attend." Dr. Solarys turned around, his back facing the two of them.
As soon as the two of them were out of the lab, Anne sighed. "I can't believe that just happened."
"Me neither, we were sent on a dangerous mission with basically no information. That's a recipe for disaster."
"I know, but what else can we do? He gave us an order, and we have to follow it."
"It'll be okay, we'll figure it out. Don't worry about it, I'm sure we'll be fine." Seren smiled reassuringly.
"If you say so, Seren."
"Anyway, we have a ship to prepare." Seren said as he smiled.
***
Present Day…
As Anne and Seren wandered aimlessly through the apocalyptic world, they tried to understand why and how things came to this. The words spoken by Dr. Solarys still made no sense, even now in this barren wasteland that has no future ahead of it.
"What should we do, Seren?" Anne asked.
As she glanced over at Seren, she couldn't help but notice that he was lost in thought. "Hey, are you okay?" She asked, concerned.
"I'm fine, it's just... I'm not sure what we should be doing here. I mean, what if there's nothing left on Earth, and we're just wasting our time here?"
Anne thought for a moment. "Maybe we're not here to find anyone, but to find something."
She gave Seren a confident smile. "There was most likely a cause for all of this, the reason why Dravien wants us to be here is so that we can locate this cause! All we have to do is search until we find something, and we'll be one step closer to understanding what happened."
Seren's expression turned to a more serious one as he considered Anne's words. "I guess that makes sense, but what if there's nothing here to find? What if we just end up being stuck here, with no way to get home?"
"That's why we need to be careful, and think about what we're doing. If we make a mistake, it could cost us our lives, and that's not a risk that either of us want to take."
"You're right, I'm sorry. I was just thinking about the worst-case scenario." Seren said. "Let's find a way out of here, together.
"I know you're worried, Seren, and that's understandable. But we have to have faith. If we work together, we can figure this out."
Seren nodded, smiling. "I know you're right, it's just hard not to be nervous.
"Hey, come on, it's getting dark. Let's find a place to stay for the night. We can figure this out in the morning."
Seren sighed, but he couldn't argue with Anne's logic.
"Alright, alright, let's find shelter."
"Come on, it's not far." Anne said as she smiled and ran up ahead, eager to explore the new world.
Seren chuckled and shook his head as he followed her.