"It's done?"

"It's done. And don't ask about it. The heist was pretty embarrassing, to be honest."

***

Arlene and Led were in a car, the prior driving to the airport. Well actually, they weren't riding towards the airport, because, if they were to actually enter, it would be the end of her and certainly of Led. The physicist was in the front seat of the car, staring away through the windows and still not-quite realizing why and what the hell had happened to him that entire day, therefore not wishing to speak with her. The drive proceeded in complete silence, until he felt immense pangs of hunger. And God, the hospital stench in the car was painstakingly awful.

He almost started to say something, but he was, abruptly, interrupted."We have to get to Spain, then to Marbella, and then to the borders.

"There's a place by the airport that'll help us to get there in time," Arlene said, in a nonchalant manner.

"What do you mean? Aren't we going to another asylum?" Led bitterly questioned. His hunger was eating him alive.

"We are going to a station-like place, where a few people have prepared the necessary amenities for our swift transportation," she ignored the remark, not looking at him. "Oh, and by the way, haven't you had anything to eat since the UN's decision? Would you like to go to a drive-through?"

Led almost started. There were two possible explanations for this absurd change of behaviour; first, she was an AI, and second, she was a psychopath. The infamous Arlene, caring about... health?

Well, his stomach grumbled, but he didn't know the time such a journey would take.

"Wouldn't it take too much time?" Led asked, guardedly. Still, he didn't trust Arlene despite her spoken intentions.

"Assuming we have 25 minutes left on the clock, 20 seconds for the drive-through at max, and 12 minutes for the flight, we'll be fine," Arlene assertively replied. "The well-being of all the mission participants is exceptionally important for the success of the mission."

Led didn't want to admit that it was his first hearing of a twelve-minute flight over distances such as the ones from America to Spain.

"Let's go to the drive-through."

"On it."

In a few minutes, a little Yummy and Point showed up at a U-turn, half-visible in the night. Led wasn't particularly religious; however, in such moments, he thanked God for having at least a little faith in his mad individual.

"We got it," Arlene said.

There was a scarce but essential collection of food displayed on the front board. Led was glad to see it as he didn't have his phone to scan the QR code. A dash of reminiscence graced his features because, in fact, he didn't have anything.

"What would you like to order?" an automated voice asked.

"Perhaps a sandwich with cheese, just on the bottom there." Led chose the least-costing option, feeling somewhat uncomfortable due to not having his wallet on him. But, he thought cynically, it wasn't as if it would make any difference.

"Excellent. Anything else?"

"We would like another sandwich, plus a cup of coffee - or tea, which do you prefer?"

"T-tea."

"Tea, then, the best there is," Arlene said, pretending not to notice his embarrassment and turning the steering wheel a bit to go to the end of the passageway. Led, in between his prayers to God ardently wishing to be taken to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean a bit quicker than necessary, wondered if the robot would be actually able to pick out "the best" product that there was available.'

"Very well, please go to the end of the driveway."

In four seconds Arlene received the light small but warm packet with food and a little cup through the half-opened car window; and drove away upon hearing a ding announcing that she had paid her payment. Led shyly took the cup and paper packet from her hands and took a sip of the tea.

"Thank you."

They continued riding, and soon enough little by little, they came to a clearance appearing amidst a lot of rows of yellowing grass, beveled unevenly. Then, something surprising happened.

"It's time to go. You can bring your food if you want to."

"It's okay, I'm not hungry," Led said, despite his meagre sorrow about leaving the half-eaten sandwich. He just didn't want to be a nuisance.

They went out, leaving the car a five hundred meter distance from the clearance, and walked by foot to the latter. Led still felt weak, but they both carried on.

After approximately 4 minutes Arlene and Led caught view of a thin capsule-looking structure situated far off in the clearance, and waited as Arlene said she had to call someone to alert them of their presence; she pressed some number on her wrist.

Sure enough, a muscular dark-skinned man came down out of the capsule-like structure to greet them; his name was Clifford Jenkins.

"Enter in here," he said, pointing to a little vault door at the capsule foundation, and letting Arlene go first. After following suit Led checked the time watch engraved in his wrist since he was 13 when it first was launched; it was 10 minutes to midnight. They might not be able to make it.

The inside of the capsule was quite organized; there were three black-coated seats and a big front window at the expense of any side ones. Led was ordered to sit in one of these chairs while the man named Cliff sat in what looked like a control room. It was framed by glass, akin to the driver's seats in a taxi.

"We might have to speed up a sick while 'cause time's getting short; try to brace yourselves a lil' for the end bit," Cliff warned them, as the engine started to roar and they both fastened their seatbelts.

They lifted off the ground.

The next thing Led remembered was an astral experience he would never forget.

***

Meanwhile, Meddles thought that Miss Chaisson could take Led's place as a near-fit for an asylum patient, since she almost looked like one. She had come with a paper-white expression on her face, but now, she looked like she could cry. The woman, whom he had known for more than a quarter of a century as an esteemed colleague, had never shown arduous emotion except on the day of her husband's passing. But now, she looked crumbled, and he, Meddles, genuinely wanted to comfort her.

But, despite her evident regret and sincerity involuntarily translated into her body language, the tired scientist didn't understand the reason behind her recent actions. He didn't understand what benefit Led's publicity was bringing to her, and why she, behind her teammates' backs, decided to tell some official authorities about Led's discoveries and, probably unintentionally, forced him to take part in the prestigious awards show and, consequently, resulted in his indefinite term confinement in an asylum. It seemed as if it was her fault... They didn't require no papers or contracts to be signed to make someone suffer like that; Meddles knew that from one of his past experiences, more precisely, from an experience of a friend, that he once had... But that was in the past now. They shouldn't focus on Miss Chaisson's moral causality right now. All that mattered at that moment was thinking of a way one could rescue young Led, and find Arlene, if possible.

"But it is 8 minutes to midnight," Smith reasoned, as if in possession of a telepathic connection with Bill Meddles. "How can we be able to free him before the submersion?"

Meddles wished to say "you're right, we can't", but one look at Miss Chaisson clearly told him not to.

"Would there be a way to delay the submersion for now? Perhaps we can get the legal evidence and persuade them to let him out," Mills suggested. Meddles smiled. He liked having young naive people in the group for their inexhaustible energy.

But, maybe, that was the only plan they had. Nobody desired to answer that question, each secretly nurturing the hope in their hearts.

"By the way, was that the UN's decision? How did they attempt... to do so?" Smith asked, breaking the silence. Miss Chaisson turned her pale face to him.

"The UN representative... the UN pres.," she said, slowly speaking out the words she didn't wish to speak. "Led was with them today to tell them about his theory."

"Indeed? And who helped them? What did they want to do?" Smith inquired, meaning to be kind but not quite succeeding this time.

"They wanted to talk with him about something, they didn't tell anyone and the people who helped them-"

"Who? Who helped?"The air was tense.

"I did."

This surprised everyone. It was five minutes to midnight, and they still hadn't done anything. Yet what could they do?