Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it - Confucius

Prologue
David was a devilish boy, finding joy in the suffering of others which
was why he found his early death to be a surprise. As he explored the
darker aspect of his personality, he found it was the screaming and
begging that he found most amusing when subjecting his victims to
torture. He felt invincible in his most evil moments, drawing strength from
the heinous crimes. This twisted personality did not change with his
death. He could feel his consciousness fade from his twitching body as he
listened to the crying of his would-be victim. When he came to, he found
himself floating just above his blood sodden corpse.

With glee he realized he was now freed from his body, a clumsy,
cumbersome vessel with the physical constraints of mortality. Now that he
was spirit he was sure to enjoy an eternity subjecting the mortals to all
forms of torture and squeezing out whatever squeals and cries he could to
sate his fiendish needs. But first (his gaze fell on the sobbing man still
covered in his blood) he had to test his powers.

He swooped down, arms outstretched and flew into the man. With a
whoosh, he slammed in him and like a car crumpling head on into a brick
wall he dissolved into oblivion. Dust swirled around the man who could
only see the limp body of a young boy and the knife in his hand, still
dripping with blood.

Chapter 1
Gabriel was a lucky man and at this moment he felt blessed. At least,
that was what he believed to be true. Things in his life were turning
around for the better and he felt like the world was loving him. Weeks
after having been let off by his previous job at a caf, he was contacted
out of the blue by Mila, an old friend who wanted to meet up and chat.
Gabriel looked at the messaged and his depressed mind wanted nothing
more to deal with. They had studied the same course together at
Brookesville University and become quite close over the years but time
took its course and they went their separate ways after graduating. He
had no idea what had become of her, but he was stuck at a dead end. His
degree led him to a job market with no jobs and a school debt hanging
over his head. Out of desperation, he had applied to small businesses
around his area as a manager of sorts. One caf offered him a spot as a
waiter instead and he had no choice to accept.

However, after months of silence from every company he applied to,

his frustration began to mount. Every letter burdened him now, one by
one dampening his hopes for proper employment. His frustration spilled
over into work, turning him into a bitter and unfriendly waiter which the
owners fired quite gladly. After two weeks of going back and forth between
bumming in his apartment and begging for forgiveness from his parents
(who after some deliberation, decided that giving him space to grow
would be better for Gabriel), Mila invited him to meet up over some
coffee. Feeling rejected and depressed, he was terrified of seeing her. He
worried that shed be disgusted with the way hed managed his life and
how much of a loser hed become. But he figured since he wasnt doing
anything with his life anyway, he might as well see her once more.

She was excited to see him and was bubbling with enthusiasm which
he couldnt help but admire and envy. It was infectious and he felt a bit
happier to see her. She made jokes and laughed when he laughed and
they started talking about their lives. She quickly caught on and topic
turned to his precarious future.

Its just that my degree hasnt really helped me get anywhere. A bit
annoying but Ill be fine soon, he lied. The debt hadnt decreased in size
at all while the funds in his bank account had diminished to pennies.

Well it seems you need help and, well, Ive got some good news for
you, she smiled, a friend of mine needed a project manager for their
research and your name popped into my head as soon as she told me.
Theyve got the brains, just no one to coordinate them. Gabriel was quite
taken aback. He considered it cautiously. Such an offer was far too
coincidental with his situation.

Thatthat sounds cool. What kind of project is it?, he asked, trying to

play it cool, but struggling to keep his feet from tapping madly as he sat.

Uh, theyve designed some sort of electromagnetic conductor. Theyve

got two architects who planned the design as well as some engineers.
They just want to build this thing but they dont know where to start. Its a
relatively new company and their resources are stretched pretty thin
already, she paused, itsprobably just a one-off job though. Itll be
super tough

Mila-the-speed-deala, there aint nothing I cant do. Or at least try to

do, he grinned. She groaned at the reference to the awful nickname hed
made for her one late night in the engineering labs, but she smiled all the
same. The old Gabriel was back.

They discussed the finer details later that night over dinner (they ate in
at Gabriels suggestion) and talked the night away. It felt like he was back
at university and it felt right. Mila left his apartment at 2 in the morning,
but not before laying a kiss on his cheek. As she descended the stairs, he
could feel it on this cheek still and the feeling didnt go away until he fell
asleep.

After meeting the team of researchers and engineers and scouting out
the facilities they had (only a cursory glance at the complicated
blueprints), he concluded that the project would be difficult and costly, but
ultimately doable. The machine was a bulky monstrosity, taking up a
majority of the ten by fifteen metre section of the largest room.
Ventilation, safety hazards, working hours and schedules had to be
checked. Gabriel could feel the pressure mounting, as the more he
investigated and checked, the more problems he found. The building itself
was fine to work in, but the pipes were old and rusted, rendering the tap
water unusable. Additionally, it took some coaxing and teambuilding for
the group to be properly coherent and coordinated.

The electromagnetic conductor was meant to be able to harness the

magnetic waves of the earths magnetic field and convert it into energy. It
was not the miraculous free energy solution he had imagined when they
pitched the idea to him, but he started to understand that it was the
ability to manipulate magnetic waves on a global scale that was the big
leap in innovation.

Two and a half years of gruelling, frustrating work, the project was
completed and all that was left was to carry out the test. If Mila was
nervous, Gabriel was positively shitting himself, as was the rest of team.
Their efforts had made it onto the news and multiple news vans were
parked close by. Many researchers were approached and forced to
nervously explain how the machine worked.

The final pieces were put together and Gabriel grinned at Mila across
the crowd as the flickering dial lit up, showing for the first time that their
hard work had paid off.

The head researchers were later awarded Nobel prizes for their work in
the field and the team were awarded grants for their efforts. Gabriel was
offered a position at a leading research centre aiming to cure diseases
worldwide and finding vaccinations. Four months later, Gabriel and Mila
were married and two years after that she was pregnant with his child.

He was at work when he got the call that she had gone into labour. He
had not wanted to go to work while she was this late in the pregnancy but
she had convinced him by lamenting how their child would grow up
malnourished and without clothes on its back, nor any shoes or Halloween
costumes to wear. He had rolled his eyes as her claims grew wilder but he
desisted once the staff assured him they would call him as soon as
anything happened.

Now, on his way to the hospital and marveling on his life previously, he
realized how lucky and blessed he was. He smiled as ahead of him, a
semi-trailer was cut off and rolled, a metallic monolith bearing down on
him.