Coin || Flip

[Villamvihar]

The walls of the Styx gap were just oppressive. There was no question about that, because even if they were miles apart, they would inevitably reach each other in the distance and because of they were dozens of kilometres high, they always seemed to be extinguishing the sun. Only a few rays of sunshine made it to the bottom of the simply huge gap between Gaia and Hades, the valley which once used to be filled to the brim with entropy. But now, only the discoloured walls and the similarly grey ground served to remind one that once, there had been an insurmountable barrier between two worlds. Only lifeless, opaque walls reminded one that just a few decades ago, a river flowed there that could deconstruct any material and a three-headed guardian made sure that no one was in the wrong place.

It was said that once you worked in the Styx Gap for a few days, you would get used to the conditions and the next time you visited your family and friends, you would find the open surface strange and alien to you. However, Calvin Ayers really could not get used to it, but then again, he was getting old according to the opinion of many. Maybe it was a youth-related thing, to be able to adapt to circumstances like little to no natural sunlight and ever-stretching walls that wanted to reach Chronos without the regard for the deity. But then again, Chronos did not care if people wanted to reach them as long as they moved forward with it.

Shaking his head slightly to clear his thoughts, Calvin Ayers stretched his old bones as he walked to the place he had been assigned this morning. Appearently, the top brass finally decided that there were enough tests done on the psuche and that they were completely harmless, so they finally assigned him to his position along with a small team. Only a few members of the team were worth noting, though as the rest were second-rate or third-rate scientists, most of whom were not even trusted to have their own psuche. They were likely only assigned under him to help him analyse and record data or perhaps because they did something unpleasant, because only very few actually volunteered to be under his service.

The old scientist could understand the reasoning behind that, but he did not understand why people would not want to hand work to other people that was not perfected. He found that perfect things were beautiful, and as such, they had a right to exist, while imperfection was ugly, so it should not exist. Then again, he reminded himself, the young people he worked with did not have the mindset of his age, taught to him by Hermes and the old ambassadors.

But he was rambling in his head again, getting lost in his thoughts, so Calvin focused his mind and cleared it with a strong breath, concentrating on the task at hand. He was supposed to meet the team today and get to know them, but he had already read their dossiers and he knew of their capabilities. Therefore, he decided that instead of getting to know each other, it would be better if they started the observations and interactions right away instead of wasting time with pleasantries and chatter. It was much more efficient that way, and efficiency was a quality of perfection.

Therefore, when he entered the room where his team was waiting for him, only the following words were said:
"I am Calvin Ayers, your new superior. Follow me to the psuches," spat Calvin as he stopped in the centre of the room for a second, then without regard for the individuals inside, he walked towards the door leading to the psuche chambers. If somebody did not like the way he did things, well then, they were free to walk out of the door.