The Mechanical Era

Chapter 26 First Contact

?Kant had managed to wake up just before the sun had risen. He went over to take his morning bath. He made sure he was as clean as possible. Once he got out, he dried himself with his white cotton towel and took the breakfast Cora left for him. After taking his breakfast, he went over to his closet and grabbed his royal suit.

Today is the day that he gets to see whether the Petersons have done their magic, by making the printing press he so desperately desired. With it out of the way, he can have another product he can easily distribute to other cities and continents, and help educate the population.

There was a knock on the door. Cora leaned into the room, informing Kant that his great white carriage is ready to go. Kant made a tight smile at his reflection and left the room and out of the palace to go to the Petersons, to get a look at the printing press he commissioned.

Kant arrived at the workshop 4 minutes earlier than expected, with Silvester accompanying him as for protection. The twins smiled at Kant and greeted him with respect by kneeling, just to be safe. Kant started by first apologizing.

"I deeply apologize for the lawful search the other day. It is just that the Knight in charge for the week..." he looked at Silvester with his eyes "is pretty concerned for my safety. However, I fully trust that you two don't have any illicit intentions."

"No need to apologize sire. We fully understood the good intentions behind it. Your security is very important."

"Shall we continue then?"

"Yes, sire. We shall."

The twins presented the prototype of the printing press. It resembled what Kant had in mind, which was a Gutenberg printing press. He observed as they use the bowl to place the ink on the moving types they had prepared.

They then put the large piece of paper on the frame and lowered down the upper plate. They slid it under the press and gave Kant the honor of pressing it. He accepted and pulled the lever. The press went down to apply pressure on it.

The plate was slid back to be opened. What they found was the ink firmly pressed on the paper. The prototype was a renouncing success, all thanks to the skills employed by the Petersons. Kant smiled at it. The printing press has finally been invented.

"I have to say this is a job well done," Kant responded.

"We should make sure that the letters are readable. Best to be sure." Victor said.

"Yes, sire. Please, read it."

Kant picked up the paper and started to read it silently. Kant's tight smile faded as he read further. He discerned that he had been trapped, outplayed by this terrorist group, whose members were right in front of him, holding him hostage.

'Prince Kant, the three people in front of you are part of the organization of Salvator Humat. It is in our best interest for you to cooperate. Do not panic, as we do not intend to harm you in any way, nor do we desire to purge people gifted with magic. Our goal is to set up a world where the monarchs of the continent give commoners the respect they deserve.

???d? n??a| ?om Cora has vouched for your talents and intelligence as a man capable of leading us to our goal and detailed your troubled past with the other princes. Please signal your response to this request this instant. It would be a danger for you to reply with your voice.'

Kant felt as if his heart ripped apart. He had known Cora since he was 6 years old. As far as he can remember, she was the only person other than her parents who treated him with love and affection. Was that all a well-crafted lie that lead up to this very moment, or was it something else entirely, that she does truly believe in him and that there was some other reason why.

Many questions raged in his mind and none of which he had the answers to. If life from the previous world told him anything, it is better to not make assumptions about something too quickly. He needs answers from Cora, to get confirmation, and her motives.

Meanwhile, as he was thinking in his head, the trio stared at him looking at the paper. All, even Silvester, can feel their heart beat faster as he continued to read it. Everything they have done lead to this very moment.

They saw Kant remain emotionless while digesting the information. When he finished, he put down the paper, and slowly turned his head to the three with a cold emotionless face. A chill went down their spine, a slight one with Silvester. He then put his index finger on his lips and made a silent 'shush' noise.

"You two have done a good job in creating what I ordered. Let's go over to the table to sit down. I would like to talk about producing 2 more printing presses." he said, returning a slight tight smile.

...

Cora took a huge breath before entering Kant's room. The curtains were closed, allowing almost no light to pass. She went inside to find him looking into the mirror slightly standing to the right, still wearing the attire he used to go out. His face was dead of emotion, with his petrifying eyes staring back at him.

"Kant?" she asked the prince.

Cora then walked towards him, with the renaissance wall mirror picking up her reflection on the left side. Once she got about 7 feet from him, his eyes move across the mirror to look at her reflection. Cora instantly stopped.

Kant simply pulled out a piece of paper written backward and showed it to the mirror. She can read it from her position, and it only asked a 3 worded question, a very simple question.

'Is it true?' it said in black ink.