SHORT STORIES FRIDAYS (57)

THE SCIENTIST WHO TURNED INTO A MONSTER ( PART 1): A SCI-FI SHORT STORY BY ME.

Hi Friends,

I am sharing this short story from my old blog published in October 2021, as I am planning to continue the story now. I know it’s late but better late than never. I will continue this story for a few weeks and would love to have your feedback.

Dr. Sunny Sharma, an eminent robotic scientist, was euphoric over his latest inventions. He finished testing his dream project with his assistant, Lavanya Mehta. He asked her to enter the name of the person whom she wanted to hypnotize in the computer that was connected to the gadget. The gadget looked like a wristwatch without straps. He uploaded the photo of the guy who was supposed to be hypnotized and asked Lavanya to type her wish.

As soon as she finished entering her desire, the laptop screen displayed a message “Data successfully uploaded.” Sunny disconnected the gadget from the laptop. He placed it around Lavanya’s neck in the form of a silver chain. He said, ” Call your boyfriend and ask him for a date. Just make sure that he touches you so that the gadget starts working.”
“Ok, Boss,” she grinned at him and took out her mobile. Her boyfriend, Anand Kumar, was the son of a billionaire but a miser. He made Lavanya pay for their dates, citing gender equality as a reason. She wanted him to buy her expensive designer clothes. Sunny dismissed her after giving her the rest of the day off. He commented,” You will update me on the status of our experiment. Do you understand? Or else I will make you work on Sunday as well.” She replied, ” Aye, Aye, Captain! You know that I am always trustworthy.” She left him alone and went to meet Anand after confirming their date.
Sunny’s hypnotizing gadget served a dual purpose. It was the blend of hypnotism with mind reading. He had kept two tiny buttons, red and yellow, on either side of the gadget. Pressing the red button activated hypnotism, while the yellow one was meant for mind reading.

He closed the door behind Lavanya and resumed work on an exciting project. Sunny felt famished after working for fourteen hours nonstop for the past two days. He decided to go home. When he exited the building, he received a call from Lavanya.
” It’s working, It’s working!” she squealed in delight, almost tearing his eardrums.
” Why don’t you calm down a bit and tell me about your experience?” he questioned her gently. She replied,” I followed your instructions. I held his hand, and lo behold! He seemed to be captivated by my voice. I asked him to take me out shopping. He didn’t refuse this time. We ended up buying a cartload of expensive clothes.” Lavanya took off the chain and handed it back to Sunny.

Sunny commented,” Great. I am very happy for you. Listen to me carefully. Stop gloating over your generous boyfriend because he is going to be a miser again from tomorrow. Be prepared for a heated argument or a possible breakup.” Lavanya was taken aback. She regained her composure and asked,” Why didn’t you tell me before? Oh, God! Now I have to come up with some valid reason to cover my ass.” Sunny ended the call and entered a restaurant across the road.
After finishing his dinner, Sunny returned to the office garage and picked up his red Chevrolet. He was unaware of a deep blue convertible following him. He reached his bungalow in Pali Hills. Sunny parked his car in the garage and unlocked the main door. His pursuers watched him entering his house.

They discussed how to approach him and use his service for their benefit. They weren’t ordinary people. They belonged to a terrorist organization. The woman in a blue mini skirt and white shirt said, ” I hope he falls for my charm. I have memorized my part so well that I want to try it out right now.”
“Don’t be an idiot,” scolded her partner,” We have to take things slowly. Let’s observe him for at least a month. It’s important to gain his trust.” The car sped away with its occupants.
Sunny had a weird dream. He was busy in his laboratory when a group of terrorists stormed in and held him hostage. They demanded his latest invention, but he refused to submit to their wishes. One of the terrorists tried to shoot him. He tripped on purpose to dodge the bullet and pressed a panic button on his table. A vortex opened up in front of him instead of the arrival of the police. He pushed the terrorists one by one into the vortex that sucked them into a black hole.

He woke up with a start. After finishing his breakfast of idlis with coriander chutney, he had a quick shower and left for his lab. He hummed a little tune after having a brilliant idea to improvise his project. He had thought of devising a remote control that could open the way to a parallel universe. This dream changed his plans. He wanted to send all the antisocial elements to the black hole. The dreadful criminals would be ripped apart as a punishment for their heinous crimes.

Sunny closed the doors of his lab and drew over the curtains to avoid the prying eyes from glancing at his experiment. He wanted to work alone that day. He texted Lavanya to take a day off and pamper herself. He resumed working on the remote by redesigning some components.

His pursuers and the future kidnappers were on a stakeout outside his lab. They were already bored, and it was just a little past breakfast time. The mysterious woman took out some sandwiches from the food parcel and shared them with her partners.

Sunny took a break to have his breakfast with tea. He noticed the car while entering the restaurant opposite his lab but pretended to ignore it. They watched him before discussing their evil plan of action.

No sooner did Sunny step out of the restaurant than a speeding car moved towards him, almost running him over. A pretty damsel threw herself at him to get him out of harm’s way. He mumbled a quick thanks without even casting a glance at her. She felt insulted while her companions couldn’t help snickering. ” Is that all you want to say?” she asked coyly, ” Wouldn’t you like to have a cup of coffee with me?”

Sunny appeared to be flustered. He snapped, “I don’t want to waste my time and money on a glamorous money-sucking doll like you. Why don’t you find a rich dope willing to go bankrupt for you?” The lady was agitated. She yelled back, ” You are an ungrateful, arrogant snob. I don’t think you are a man enough to acknowledge the presence of a beautiful girl. Wait a minute! Now I get it. You are gay, aren’t you?” Sunny clenched his teeth before hitting out,” Just shut up, you chatterbox! I am sure that even your tongue is pleading for a rest. Take this money for your help. Please do me a favor by going away out of my sight.”
He thrust a 500₹ in her hand, leaving her open-mouthed in shock.
He turned away to continue with his experiment. He worked relentlessly well past lunch hour. His dream project was almost over. He had redesigned the remote and wanted to test it. He picked up a cockroach crawling near his workstation and pressed the button on the remote. A vortex opened up near the door, revealing a very dark space. He threw the poor insect and watched it getting sucked into the black hole.

He smiled at the success of his invention. He wanted to seek revenge from those who had wronged him. When he wound up his work and stepped out of his lab, he noticed the same car that he had seen in the morning. He had found his new scapegoats for the dangerous experiment. His would-be kidnappers didn’t realize that they were no threat to him. A sinister smile played upon his lips as he mulled over their fates.

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