Kylie rested her elbows on the workbench in front of which she sat and pressed her fingers against her forehead. She was tired but the prototype was almost ready. Years of research and papers at the expense of family, friends, and any sort or relationship was nearing fruition. The device looked like a mad scientist's creation, not the work of a theoretical physicist. Kylie's minor as and electrical engineer had proved invaluable as other, probably more qualified individuals scoffed at her research and theories and suggested she try and do something that would get her a job in the real world. She was going to show them all.

She took a deep breath and dropped her hands; they were actually shaking. Kylie took a breath to calm herself and picked up her soldering iron again in one hand and one of the few remaining FPGAs in the other. She moved the desk mounted, articulated, lighted, magnifying glass into place and started to solder.

An hour later and Kylie was done. She sat back in relief. It was by no means pretty, but her soldering was good and strong and everything fit together nicely. The device, about the size of a shoebox, was built around an EM emitter with several focusing rings. Complex multilayer circuitry covered every surface. There was a built in LCD for basic information display, a USB port for detailed diagnostic information, and a numeric keypad for data entry. The power cord was thick and plugged into a 200 amp circuit, and the handle provided a convenient way to carry the device.

Eager now, Kylie picked up the plug and plugged the device in. It did it's power up diagnostics, printing the results on the display. Kylie nervously watched for errors but none occurred; this was an encouraging sign.

When the tests has successfully completed Kylie carefully aimed the device at her target, a piece of rebar. She punched in a range using the keypad and hit enter. There was a quick whirr as the focussing rings adjusted so her standing wave would collapse at the specified point (four feet in front of the device), then aside from a low level hum, nothing. This was promising. Kylie got off her stool and walked to the end of the table where the rebar stuck straight up. She reached up to the top and pulled it down infront of her.

The bar effortlessly bent in a six inch area around the middle. Kylie released the end of the bar, exhilerated. "Yes!" She cried and punched ther air. "Sweet mother of god. Yes!" She quickly returned to her machine and turned it off. It had worked,or so it seemed. Kilel collected re bebar and quickly took it to the materials testing lab. Unpon inspection there were no micro fractures or stresses in the rebar. Everything was in alignment and equilibrium. This bent bar had, aside from being bent, all the same properties as it had had when it was straight. Kylies Quantum Foam Bubbler, as she called it, worked.

"Lando, could you check something over for me?" Kylie asked when he passed the door to her lab a few days later. Kylie had spent the invervening days assembling and organizing her notes. Lando was someone she had gone to school with and she respected his intellect. He was also one of the few people she knew more about than just their name. "I just need to verify that I've covered all angles here," she said.

"Sure thing Kiley," Lando replied. "I can't do it right now, group status meeting with the supervisor and all that. Are you going to be there? You've missed the last few."

Kylie frowned. "I hate those things, but I guess I should go once in a while."

Lando grinned. "We all hate them. Let's get a coffee on the way and you can fill me in on what I'll be checking for you."

Kylie nodded. "Yeah, I need to get out of this lab anyway." She stood from her stool and started across the lab. Lando watched as she crossed the floor, noting the confidnece with which she walked before noting her mismatched socks and the sandals she wore them in. Academically and theoretically her mind was unmatched save by the greatest minds in their fields; however, socially, fashion, and common sense wise she was about as gifted as an autistic hermit.

Kylie was on to something big Lando decided; she didn't exude confidence naturally. As they walked his curiosity got the better of him. "So what exactly is it you want me to look over?"

Kylie considered her reply before answering. She'd been bitten by quick unverified judgements before and didn't want this to turn into a debacle. "You're aware of my theories around quantum foam and the rigitidy of matter?" Lando nodded. "I made a working quantum flux stabalizer protype. I just want-"

Lando stopped in the middle of the hall. "You did what?" he asked.

Kylie quickly looked around. Fortunately there was nobody in earshot. She stepped close to Lando. "I constructed a working device that neutralizes all force in the quantum field in a localized space. In that space rules of matter need not be respected as I theorized years ago-"

"You were ordered by management to abandon that research months ago," Lando said. "Are you telling me you haven't worked in the string theory equaitons at all?"

Kylie scoffed. "I balanced those weeks ago. An hour here and there and it was done. It was child's play. What I have done... it's truly exciting."

"Kiley, this could be revolutionary," Lando stated.

"I know. That's why it's exciting," she replied.

Lando turned around, coffee and meeting forgotten. "Show me your proofs," he said.

"I don't believe it," Lando said as he looked at a cross section of the bent rebar. They never even made it to the coffee machine. "There is no structual damage at all. The molecular structure is completely intact. No fatigue or fractures. This is incredible. Do you know what this means?"

Kylie wore a rare smile. "I know exactly what it means: new forms of matter, super strong construction, potentially drawing energy from quantum flux. This is world changing." She patted her prototype.

"This thing allowed you to do that?" Lando asked, pointing to the bent bar.

"Effortlessly," Kylie verified, pride evident in her voice, as Lando examined the prototype, turning it around to look at it from all sides. Neither of them heard the noises coming from the device as Lando accidentally poered the device up

"How does it work?" he asked.

"You'll have to read my paper on that." Kylie said coyly. "First I need my work checked."

"I'll do it if you gve me co-authorship." Lando said, leaving the prototype on the table.

Kylie pursed her lips. Lando thought it made her look cute. "How about 'with contributions by'?" Kylie offered back.

Lando broke into a grin. "Deal," he said, extending a hand. Kylie took his hand to shake it, precicely four feet infront of the prototype that had been accidentally turned on. Lando raised his arm to shake slightly before Kylie did, but both of them stopped when her arm bent between her wrist and elbow.

"Ah!" Kylie cried and quickly let go of Lando's hand, recoiling.

"Jesus!" Lando exclaimed, starting in awe. "Are you alright?"

Kylie quickly pulled the plug on the prototype with her other hand before anything more happened. Her arm didn't hurt, her fingers still worked when she waggled them, her arm was just bent in a way that it wasn't before. "I think so," Kylie replied. She poked at the bend with her other hand. "It doesn't hurt," she reported. Other than the shape, there didn't feel to be anything wrong.

Lando approached to examine Kylie's arm too. The bend was smooth. There were no creases in her skin. It was like her arm was meant to be bent. Lando ran a hand from her wrist to her elbow, following the contour of her arm. "Can you feel all that? Does it feel strange?"

Kylie shook her head. "Not at all. It feels like normal."

"We should get some xrays or something. You need to be looked at by a doctor," Lando said.

"No. I don't. Don't call anyone. Management want results, not theories. I'm on thin ice here as it is," Kylie said. "If mangement gets wind of an accident in my lab I'll be fired for sure. No. I'll fix this myself."

"How do you plan on doing that?" Lando asked.

Kiley shook her head again. "I don't know, but I'll find a way."

"You'll need someone's help in case anything goes wrong." Lando pointed out. "I've got nothing important for the rest of the day. Let me help."

Kiley sighed. He did have a point. "Fine, but not here. We have to get out of here with the prototype now. I can't afford to have anyone find out about this. You're one of the few people I trust Lando."

Lando nodded. "I know."

Kylie gathered up the power cord and the prototype and picked it up in her good hand. Lando draped her spring jacket over her bent arm in an attempt to conceal it. As they prepared to leave Lando cracked a joke. "So can I get a little more recognition in your paper now that we're conspirators?"

Kylie missed the humor. "If we're successful in fixing this I'll give you co-author," she replied. "Let's go," she commanded and started off at a quick pace. It was a short walk down the hall to the parking lot exit.

Lando quickly followed. "I was joking about getting more recognition," he said as he caught up to her. "Just trying to lighten the mood."

"I don't joke." Kylie stated.

"Apparently," Lando said. They were silent for a few steps. Some staff down the hall waved in greeting. Lando waved back. "So I'll drive?"

"I can drive." Kylie answered curtly.

Lando scanned his badge and held open the door for Kiley."Really?" he asked. "Get your car keys out."

Kiley scoffed and flipped her jacket up over her shoulder. She tried to reach into her pocket for her keys. Instead she found herself rubbing the front of her thigh.

"Not as easy as you thought? Hand not in the right place?" Lando asked, letting the door close behind him.

Kylie harumphed "Point taken. Which car is yours?"

"Blue truck next to the tree." Lando pointed.

"Really?" Kiley asked. "A truck? Isn't that hard on gas?"

Lando made a sound of agreement. "My soul dies a little every time I fill it's tank," he said, "but it comes back to life when I'm out on the lake in my speed boat."

"You have a boat?" Kiley asked.

"And a cottage, for now anyway." Lando answered

"What do you mean 'For now'?"

Lando sighed. "My wife and I separated a year ago, on a trial basis." Kylie nodded, she remembered hearing about it in passing, but due to her solitary nature she missed most of the gossip. "We'd grown apart, but I think we both hoped that we'd be able to patch things up, but we we're constantly being drawn apart.

"We had already acquired so much stuff together. It's a hard thing splitting two intertwined lives. It takes planning. She moved out and her acting carrear has really started to take off. Now she wants to move to New York because she was offered a part in an off broadway Andrew Lloyd Webber musical."

Lando pressed the unlock button on his fob as they approached the truck. "It's weird how much things can change in a year. The last time we saw each other she told me she was going to go. I wished her luck, and that was it. No hug, no kiss, just like friends instead of a couple." Kylie reached for the door handle but missed. She adjusted her arm, watching her hand this time, and tried again with success.

"I told her that was great and was genuinely happy for her; and I really am." Lando said and Kylie fit the prototype behind the passenger seat. He helped her step up into the truck. "I wish her all the success in the world, but I liked having someone."

Lando walked around the front of the truck and climbed into the driver's seat. "This feels final," he continued, "and I sense a hole opening up in my life. I don't know what's going to happen or how I'm going to be able to afford everything and to be honest it's a little frightening." The engine roared as he turned the ignition before settling into a low purr.

"It sounds like your life is in a perod of flux," Kylie noted after Lando backed out of his parking spot. "I've read your work. You're an intelligent person. I have no doubt you'll land on your feet."

Lando scoffed as he rolled down the window to scan his badge to exit the parking lot. "Sometimes being intelligent isn't enough," he said as the arm blocking the exit raised. "IQ and EQ are two very different things. If I had a higher EQ and a lower IQ I might not be in this situation."

Kiley nodded. "I know that difference all too well," she said.

"So you are aware of your own difference from the norm." Lando said.

"If you must put it as such, yes I am." Kiley replied. "But what is normal?"

"That is a question for the philosophers," Lando stated.

Half an hour later Lando and Kiley pulled into the driveway of his house. It wasn't a large house, but it was fully detached and had a garage infront of which they parked.

"Why not park in the garage?" Kiley asked. "What's the point of having a garage if you don't use it?"

"I do use it," Lando replied as he pressed the button onhis garage door opener remote then opened his door and disembarked. "It's my workshop," he continued as the garage door opened. "Sometimes things get broken and have to be fixed." Kiley nodded and opened her door.

Before Kiley could step down Lando was there offering her a hand. The truck was nearly a foot higher than she was used to. Dangling her feet out the door still left a good eight inches to jump. Kylie smiled and took Lando's offered hand with some difficulty because of the odd angle in her forearm.Kiley had never had someone act chivalrously towards her like that. She made it to the ground with a short hop none the worse for wear. Lando reached behind the seat and picked up the prototype. "Let's get you sorted out," he said and started for the workbench in the garage

Kylie looked around the workshop as she entered, following Lando. It was far from the neat and tidy environment of the labritory. Though most tools were put away a few were laying out. A few half finished projects were scattered about. Some of the designes looked familliar to Kristy. Curoius, she asked, "Is that a-"

Lando interrupted, "An electon field modulator? Yes. Well, kind of anyway." He put the prototype down on the workbench. "This," Lando swept his arm around, "is my thinking space. A man's workshop should reflect his mind so the physical world does not interrupt the flow of thought."

"So your thinking is disorganized?" Kylie asked.

"Ouch." Lando replied. "You tease, but this is where my most successful ideas have been born, along with my car getting fixed and varios other things. I'll have an idea here, cobble something together, then prove the principals it exploits using much better and more refined equipment in the lab."

Kylie srugged. "Whatever works for you I guess. If I had a workshop it would be spotless."

"Ha, a clean workshop is an inadequately used one." Lando stated.

"I thought you weren't a philosopher." Kylie replied.

Lando grinned. "I am when it suits me." He turned back to the prototype. "Now how do you set this up?"

"It has the last used state stored," Kylie explained. "It was set to create a bubble four feet in front of the emitter. We should be able to just turn it on, put my forearm in the bubble, then straighten it."

"Simple as that?" Lando asked.

"Simple as that." Kylie agreed. Lando scoffed.

"Nothing is simple," he said. "Something always happens, but that's when the greatest discoveries are made."

Kylie shook her head. "Let's try and keep this simple. Press the green button to turn it on." Lando did so. The prototype whirred as it refocused and then started to hum. The workshop lights flickered.

"Is it working?" Lando asked.

Kiley approached, avoiding going directly in front of the emitter. There were no errors logged. "Yes," she confirmed. “The bubble will be four feet in front of the emitter.”

“Alright,” Lando clapped, startling Kiley, and rubbed his palms together. “Let’s try straightening your arm.” He stepped away from the table. “It should be somewhere around here.”

Kiley sighed. Lando’s cavalier attitude was trying, especially when they were trying to fix her. She picked a tape measure off the workbench and extended the tape. She was starting to adapt to having the bent arm, but the motions felt incorrect. She still had to watch her hands to make sure they were where she expected them to be. Kiley set the lock on the tape when she measure four feet out and put it down beside the prototype. Lando was off by a foot. “It’s right there,” Kiley said.

Lando grimaced and corrected his position. “Okay, get over here so we can do this,” he said.

Kiley clicked her tongue. “Sorry for being careful and precise,” she replied before moving opposite Lando. “It’s my arm and I want it- WOAH!”

Kylie’s foot went out from underneath her and she pitched forwards. Lando caught Kiley’s windmilling hand to keep her from falling. It didn’t work. Kylie’s arm passed through the quantum bubble and her hand stopped, her arm and the rest of her did not. Kiley tried to catch herself, but her bent arm did her no favors as the hand she put out to catch her was not where it was supposed to be. She fell to the ground in a heap while her hand and wrist remained in Lando’s firm grip.

“Holy crap. Are you alright Kiley? You didn’t hit your head, did you?” Lando asked.

“Ow,” Kiley said from the floor. Then the lights went out as circuit breaker tripped, plunging the workshop into darkness.