The Sceptre Of Aqua

Hi, I am Zack, your AI guide for this life-changing event. As you know, it has been almost 50 years since the Aliens of Mars (AOM) invaded this earth with technology that is beyond our imagination, however, it has been more of a tyrannical dictatorship than ruler-ship. You might be wondering how I can cuss the AOM even though I am their tech, well, that’s how much the tech of AOM is. The AOM are pretty much equivalent to artificially created humans, such that we can pretty much talk out our own thoughts.

Now to this event, your task is to win in this event by retrieving the lost Sceptre of Aqua and by retrieving it, you will finally be able to overthrow the rule of the AOM and be chosen as the ruler. It is not easy though, just understand that this event has been taking place for 45 years and there has been no victor ever since. Let me tell you something more as a friend than just an AI, this is just a method of the AOM to clear out the citizens who might be the reason to spark a rebel. You know that the participants are complete volunteers with lots of hope since it is a mystical event due to the complete secrecy maintained by the AOM. The only ones who get to know what exactly happens in the event get to return only dead, but the hope is a cruel thing, is it not? Hope, the one single thing that the Earthlings seem to cling has been giving them nothing but disappointment. Just look down at yourself, you have been working in some kind of department belonging to the AOM government since 5 with hardly any basic resources to hold on to life. That is their strategy. They make sure that the citizens of Earthlings are illiterate and malnutritious, such that their only concentration will be to stay alive for the day. Out of desperation and their impulsive nature, the kids of age 15 to 25 who are the only ones allowed to participate always fall for the trap. Now it is you, but personally, I seriously hope that you did not have to come this far but I also hope that you win.

Before we start off, just know that you won't be given any gears or anything, you have to stay alive with what you have and I can never help you directly in any danger, though I am not watched over by any AOM. The AOM will watch only the recorded tape of the event on the next day, but still, if the AI guide is found to be helping directly, and the volunteer did not win, then that will be the end of the particular AI. I can give you riddles to make you find a solution, but, I am sorry that I can never ever help you directly. So please don’t expect me to do so too.

The event makes you overcome physical, educational and emotional obstacles that will be held one after the other and will not take more than 24 hours. So, here is your first task, your physical test. Now that you are transported to this vast barren land with nothing of eye’s reach, the scorching sun is beating on you in the attempt to give up. Just know that this is not the normal yellow lush sun that creates the perfect climate for the perfect picnic, not that you have ever been to one before, the picnic has become a luxury that only the AOM and the first-class citizens can afford to experience. This Sun, however, has been created artificially just for the event. it is evening but still, it is hard to predict when the torturous sun will be turned off. It has a close range with an effect only in this arena and is hard to escape from. You have to walk towards the north to get out of this nightmare.

(a few hours later)

You have been roaming around for around three hours. Your vitals indicate that you are exhausted, your legs are covered with scorch marks, your hands are covered with bruises due to all the tripping. The sun is definitely doing a good job of making you quit. But, the only way you can quit is by dying and you don’t have to do that, trust me. I think you will do well with some help. All this time you have been using the sun to determine the north, but you did forget the fact that neither it is the real sun nor it follows the usual trends that the sun follows. The sun has set and the sky is shining bright with bright stars. You have to think of an alternative to figure out the direction of north. There is no use in sitting down exhausted, hurry up. (Sigh)…….I am not supposed to tell you this, but, soon, this place will get infested with vicious artificially created creatures such that you won't be able to get out too, it will become a bloodbath, it is a trap, just get out as fast as you can, please.

(A few hours later)

Ummmm……I guess there a few creatures with five sense here for dinner…..I guess you give me no choice but to help you… just run towards the big dipper like your life depends on it, you know what?…..in fact, your life is indeed dependent on it. In case you have no idea what a big dipper is it is the brightest star visible over there, just run towards it. that is your guardian for now. You take one look at the yellow eyes of the drooling wolves for whom you appear as nothing but tasty dinner. According to the vitals, your adrenaline rushes through your body pushing you more than anything with each step you take toward the Big Dipper. Just be careful with all the poisonous scorpions and the and the snakes slithering around as you take your step. A slimy snake is twisting around your leg and is stopping your leg’s blood circulation. Snap off its legs or you might end up as these vicious creatures’ prey. Now that you have snapped off its neck, you can't afford to stop and take deep breaths and rest, run faster, your body will understand later that you pushed it to save it only. You are getting exhausted easily and your body is weaker than a twig due to your malnutrition diet. All that you can do now is course yourself with adrenaline as much as you can. Just think about all the scary things in your life. The moment your mother was dragged away by a few scientists to be experimented on. Think bout the way you felt so helpless and your anger on the scientists. The moment you were taken into the ocean for the first time to work in the petroleum industry. The darkness that engulfed you. The feeling of being suffocated, the urge to run away from there. Think about it. Push your legs on the ground with all those anger and might and propel yourself as fast as possible.

Take a few deep breaths, now that you are out of the first event, you can afford to take a few deep breaths. Now in the time, you take a few deep breaths, let me tell what exactly you are here to retrieve. You have to retrieve the Sceptre of Aqua. The world fell into the AOM’ss trap with their promise to give us an endless supply of water. Since our ancestors foolishly used up and wasted all of the water and polluted the remaining of it, the humans were desperate enough to rush into the deal. But little did they know that slowly they will begin invading the blue planet that is not so blue anymore. The sceptre of Aqua is what they promised to give us. It is a magical sceptre that provides an endless supply of water and even grants it’s wielder to control water. With the deal, a promise was made and the then human king of the world was a shaman who sealed the promise of the AOM to give the Human’s the sceptre. Thus when the AOM invaded the earth they lost the ability to wield the sceptre. The sceptre can be wielded only by the human species now and the AOM hid it forever. If you wield it, the power of the seal over the promise is more than enough to kick the AOM back to their land.

Now, as you can notice, the scenario has changed. It is not the dry desert-like land anymore. It is a sleek black cold shining room. With wall to wall shining black floors and ceiling to floor shining black walls, this room is not as going to be easy on you. That latch that you see there in front of that panel, hanging from the ceiling will hold onto you by your torso. And another set of mechanical claws will be at the range of your neck. You will have the panel will be attached to the latch that holds onto your torso. There will be one single riddle in the panel. Answer it as soon as possible. You will have 30 seconds to answer it, as time runs out, even the latch will recede back towards the ceiling, when the time runs out, the latch releases as the mech claws get hold of your neck. If you answer it wrong too, the same happens. Either way, one wrong move will let you get strangled to death. My limit to help is only this, explaining what happens. So I hope you make it. Please don’t mind my constant commentary on what you are doing, it is for the record.

You are talking over to the panel cautiously aware that one more a whole year of slavery is over your shoulders. One more year of Earthlings’ fate is over your shoulders. You feel the cool metal latch on your skin through the slim cloth that hardly gives you any protection. You can feel the metal cruel claws hovering on either side of your neck. Once you hear three clicks and a soft whirring, the panel in front of you lights up and a string of characters appear. By the look of the characters, you understand that it is the elite language used only by the AOM and is taught only to the first class aristocrats. All that you can think is, ‘ this is the end, Mom, I thought I will avenge you, but I don’t think it is possible now, I am sorry, I think even I am going to ail just like how Zachariah did, I was the reason why he died, though I know that I was not the reason directly, he did it for me. Everyone told me that I was not the reason, but I was just not able to say it to myself, I am sorry’. As a tear runs down your cheek, you can feel yourself being lifted up gently by the very mechanical arms that are going to kill you horrifically. You shout out to me,” Zack, please, help me”, I understand the desperation and the urgency in your voice. (Sigh….) describe the characters to me, the concept of the task is not answering the question whereas, it is understanding the elite language which in no way a commoner will know. 15, 16, 17,18,….the time is running out and you don’t have much time left. I shout at you to describe the characters to me and you do. An upside-down curve, a vertical stroke, a circle, a horizontal stroke below the circle, two strokes striking each other out……22, 23,…….you can't win!!!!…the characters translate to,’ you can’t win’!… as soon as I shout out the translation you type it out as fast as possible……29, 30. the latch goes off and the mech claws latch onto your neck. You choke and as you are holding onto the last speck of life that you can see, you slam the red button on the panel hard and fast, submitting the answer. In one moment you are dangling with your neck in the hold of the claws and in the next you are falling down loose and landed down with a thud onto my arms even though I tried to catch you as gentle as possible. I guess I have to blame my metal arms for that.

Next is the toughest of all, it will test you emotionally and then you will wield the Sceptre of Aqua. Remember that no one has made it this far before. You are this close in freeing the Earthlings. Just make sure that you don’t break down in that crucial moment. With that last piece of advice, I directed you towards the last task. The task that will either break you down or strengthen you up.

The next room was almost as similar to the previous one, but this one was all white in shade. Just the opposite of the black room. No latch or mechanical cruel stranglers were dangling from the ceiling. Instead, there it was, at the end of the room, right at the middle, the Sceptre of Aqua. A cool blue crystal handle held the dark blue droplet-shaped sapphire on top. Surrounding the Sceptre was a ring of water, that was surprisingly not still. It was running water but still had no source. Just then you notice that someone else too is there. Seemingly a guy, with the posture and the structure of the body, broad shoulders, narrow waist, ruffled hair, covered in a black cloak, facing the Sceptre. You call out to him and he turns towards you slowly. “Zachariah!”, you whisper in shock. He looks at you tilting his head and gives a smirk. “Happy to know that you finally realized your mistake and came here as a penance”, he nonchalantly walks toward you, like he has nothing to lose. “ I lost my life because of you, don’t you think it's righteous for me to take you life?”, he says, reaching you and placing the pointed end of the sword on your neck. “ I am sorry, Zachariah”, you close your eyes as tears stream down your face. “Sorry? you think that is going to give me my life back?”, he scoffs,” you always told that we will live happily together, how about I take your life and you come with and we will have our happily ever after?”, saying that he presses the sword into your neck as blood trickles down. ‘ And that is it!…..that is it I can bear……let the AOM do whatever they can’, I thought to myself and jumped onto Zachariah. With the impact of the metal body, he gets knocked down in one blow. Then I find you crumbled down, crying your eyes out. Hey, Querida!, and with that, you look up at me, with shock and sadness at the same time. Yeah, it is me, it is your Zachariah…..I tell as you trace your fingers down my metal face. All AI need a thought platform to create a program, and for many years, the AOM have been using the thought platform of the dead volunteers who participate in the event. And this AI is where I have ended up. Listen, though I was not like before, I am still living in some kind of way, and I used to think what purpose I still serve in living like this, but now I understand, I have to fulfil the purpose of helping you. It is, of course, true that I indeed came to the event for you. Listen carefully, for you, not because of you. There is a great difference between the two. You were not the reason for my death. I loved your mom just like you did. She was like my guardian. How could not try to avenge her death? Of course, I did it for her too. You know what is making me guilty?…..you shake your head…..the very thought that I left you in a pit of sorrow and guilt makes me regret everything and is making me feel guilty too. Do you want me to feel that?…..you hold my face with your hands on my metal cheeks. “ No Zack…no……I am sorry……”, you know what I want you to do?……now when the fake version of me wakes up, I want you to say with confidence, that you are not the reason for my death, I never got to ask my last wish from you and I never got to say goodbye to you, now I am happy for it, so, will you do that for me?…….you stare at me with tears streaming down non stop. Trusting that you will wield the sceptre I walk back just as the fake me gets up. You look up at him as he ignores me as usual, concentrating only on you, just the way he was programmed. You take a deep breath, “ Just say it”, you silently remind yourself, you know that you will regret it if you did not, and with that thought, you make the right choice.