Dang Convergence Vol. 1

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE CYBERNETIC-DANG

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

CYBERNETIC-DANG

To leave or not to leave. That is the question.

Daedalus joked with himself as he continued to tinker with the metal gears and screws inside the Waymaker, a way to distract his brain from the millions of thoughts running through his mind.

Was there really anything back home? he asked himself the question multiple times. He thought about Charles and Layla, and he was sure they'd escaped. There was no way they were still in that universe. He wouldn't let himself believe that the mission hadn't succeeded...

...but he also had no way to be sure. None except to go look for them by himself.

He wasn't even sure that there was still a world waiting for him behind that portal. Did Bellum have his fill and leave some leftovers or did he consume everything? What would he be walking into if he did?

There were simply too many factors to consider. Staying in this world was the only sensible option.

Yet, a part of him still argued...

Tiger walked through the doors of the quantum lab and was immediately overwhelmed by the smell of...

"Ugh, what's that smell?" they asked out loud.

"Probably the oil," Daedalus' head came out from behind the uncompleted Waymaker 2.0, with his face and hair covered in oil.

"Well then pop open a window or something!"

Daedalus glanced around, scanning, "I think all the windows are open already. And the HVAC system is operational too."

"And the room still smells like this?" Tiger asked. They'd drawn the collar of their shirt over their mouth and nose to make the smell more bearable.

"Yeah...," Daedalus replied, "To be fair, 'better ventilation for the quantum lab' was one of the things on our to-do list."

"Alright, hold on," Tiger said. They entered a stance, steadying themself and bringing their hands to their hips. They outstretched their hands and pulled them back to themselves, inhaling, dragging the air with them. The air obeyed and gathered around them, enclosing them in a whirlwind. Then they exhaled, forcing the air to disperse and sending it out through the vents and the windows.

New, clean air rushed into the room, replacing the stench that had been there a few seconds before.

"Thanks," Daedalus called out.

"It's no problem," Tiger responded, "I don't even know how you could breathe well in a room like that."

"In-built ventilation filter." Daedalus knocks on his chest a few times, "I couldn't even smell it."