Natura | Xynoia Series: Book I

I: VINCENT (Dimenculi-X)

I just stood there, in the middle of our garage, binder in hand, waiting for his instructions as he was building the creation that I designed. I felt a sense of envy, wanting to also be able to do what he could. But all I could do was draw and hope that my design would be great enough for Ronan to build. I didn't have that esteemed talent of engineering like he did. To myself, I was simply an architect. To Ronan, I was an assistant. Never in my life did I think that I would envy one of my closest friends.

"Wrench... screwdriver... hammer," Ronan called out, instructing me to give him the said items. I followed, handing him the wrench, then the screwdriver, then the hammer. I observed his keen skills as he worked from under the machine, resting flat on his skateboard, hoping that I could too learn the art of engineering. However, because of his quick and diligent movements, I couldn't pick up anything. I could only pick up what to do, not how to do it.

"I shouldn't be thinking about this right now. I should focus on our invention, our debut as scientists," I thought to myself. I put this envious feeling aside and continued to help Ronan. In the corner of the room, I saw Iris, another one of my closest friends, working focused on her laptop. Her violet eyes, covered by her tinted black glasses, darted toward the bright screen, light reflecting off her mahogany skin. She always seemed to be attached to that "thing", working every day non-stop by clicking the keys on her keyboard. Ever since she was young, I observed that she had a burning passion for programming. Whenever we went to our STEM classes, I always heard her say, "I can't wait to code!" with such a glorious smile. And I know that her passion still remains to this day, and her dedication keeps getting stronger.

Suddenly, the sense of envy came back, but this time it wasn't toward Ronan. Instead, it was toward Iris, and her keen dedication and talent toward programming. Ronan was skilled at engineering, and Iris was at programming. But what was I skilled at? Drawing? A four-year-old can draw! If I'm talented at something that a four-year-old can do, then am I really talented, or am I just useless?

Suddenly, Iris looked up from her laptop and flashed a stare at me, causing my envious thoughts to flee. I darted my head back toward Ronan and looked away from Iris. From my peripheral view, I saw her grimace at my reaction, and she asked loudly, "Is it almost done yet?"

"Yep! Almost!" Ronan responded as he was finalizing his work, "Just adding the last few finishing touches and... boom! The Dimenculi-X should be complete!"

I backed away from the machine to view the final product. In full view, the final product was a large hexagonal tech machine that looked somewhat like a huge lantern. It had black, spiky, futuristic designs all over its walls, and a cone-shaped top. The machine had two clear sliding doors and a plethora of wires coming out of it that were all connected to two large screens. On the outer wall of the machine, there was a little holder that held a black remote. I looked at the remote and tried to come up with something to say. Something to critique. Out of spite, I asked Ronan, "Did you remember to add—"

"The TripleA batteries to the remote?" He finished as if he knew what I was going to say. "Yup, I added them," he said as he slid out from under the machine on his skateboard, pulling up the goggles covering his eyes and looking straight at mine.

Behind me, I heard Iris's laptop close and the sounds of her swift footsteps growing loudly. Ronan, who had dust and dirt all over himself, stood up from his skateboard to look at our work.

"Woah!" Iris exclaimed in awe with gleaming eyes.

"Ain't she beautiful?" Ronan said with hands on his hips. I know he felt proud of himself, but I took his expressions as cockiness.