Madam Madex

Library, Japan

19th March, 1939

Very simple was my explanation, and plausible enough—as most wrong theories are!1

Suzuki follows his routine of visiting all the alleys of the library. He starts his tour on the second floor, checking the refurbished book section, followed by the textbooks, and ending with the reference section. He comes down to the ground floor, where he spots an individual with a ponytail in the reading section; he pats the research scholar.

“It’s 10:00; I need to shut down the library. Visit the hostel library if you want to continue studying.”

He passes across the research paper section, switching off all the lights, and spots a girl in a ponytail busy with a few stacks of paper.

Suzuki knows her; she is Hana Saito, the youngest researcher in the Faculty of Science, University of Tokyo. Saito looks up and smiles towards the librarian.

“Is it late again, Mr Suzuki?”

Suzuki displays his left hand. “Go to your quarters; it’s already late.”

Saito, “I need a few more minutes; I need to understand the mathematics in this paper.” Suzuki. “Come tomorrow; I need to close the library.

Saito: “Mr Suzuki, it is important in our field and maybe for the future of our nation.”

She gently runs her left hand over her belly, trying to locate the origin of the pain. She had experienced it before, especially on nights when she went to bed without supper. She gets up and eats some cookies, but the pain continues to persist

The golden rays peeping through the gaps of the blue curtains revealed the exhausted face of a girl with a ponytail; it was a peaceful setting, which was broken by the robust sound of an alarm clock. Hana woke up in a hurry, got dressed in a hurry, drank tea in a hurry, cycled to her department in a hurry, and knocked on the cabin door of her research supervisor. There was no response from the other side. Hana was aware of the situation. So, she stepped into the room like a church mouse, in a silent manner.

The blue ink of the Waterman is flowing like the young Shinano, rapid and unstoppable in its manner. The person holding the Waterman has strong arms, broad shoulders, silky salt-and-pepper hair, and a tilted nose. The left hand was continuously scribbling, and the right hand was constantly tapping on the green study table. Hana remained silent for almost half an hour, and finally she said, “Good morning, Madam, I have something to show you.”

The owner of the Waterman didn’t even bother to look up and replied in a husky voice, “Meet me during the High Tea at the Departmental Canteen. Leave.” Hana is already sleep-deprived, and she decides to visit her apartment for a short nap. When she returned, she saw her calculation sheet, and the paper was lying on the table. She remembered her morning routine and her tendency to forget stuff. She kept it inside, set an alarm, and dozed off to sleep.

The clock struck 02:45 pm, she got up, and she pedalled towards the departmental canteen.

Hana spots the silky salt-and-pepper hair over a broad shoulder at the north side of the canteen. She doesn’t waste her time exchanging pleasantries and showcases her notebook.

Hana: “Madam, I guess we have found our solution regarding the calculation of time.”

Madam keeps her teacup aside and puts on her moon-shaped reading glasses. Hana waits; Hana waits forever. It seems like the wait is eternal; it doesn’t get over, it won’t get over, and she feels she is stuck in the absolute depth of time. But the supervisor looks up after almost an hour; she mutters, “Hana, write a letter to the journal and get in touch with the researcher.”

“I am taking these sheets to my study. Although they appear to be error-free, I will still consult with Dr. Nikhil Patil from the Mathematics Department, search for other papers by this author, and ask you to meet me at my place after a week.”

Hana smiles, not within herself. She smiles…

She smiles because, unlike the last few meetings, she didn’t throw away the papers, saying, “All rubbish, all derivatives, nothing original, think forward.”

Hana takes a quick bite. She visits the Central Library. Suzuki was flipping pages of Keijō Nippō, one of the highest-circulated dailies of Nippon. Hana, along with her dangling ponytail, dashes across Suzuki and marches towards the Journal’s Section. Hana scribbles down the details of the editors and hurries back to her place. Hana boils some noodles for herself and starts typing a letter to the editor of the journal requesting the details of Dr Chatterjee. She mixes some homegrown sauce with the noodles, and then the last thread of the noodles disappears in her mouth.

Hana’s Room,

29th March, 1939

Hana boils up some noodles. Hana looks for an inkpot. Hana refills her fountain pen. Hana starts scribbling something on a piece of paper. She scratches it, then repeats the action. After a few more attempts, she begins typing on her crooked typewriter. Hana promised herself, “I will buy a new typewriter.”

Dr Hana Saito, Researcher, Department of

Robotics University of Tokyo,

Japan 03-29-1939

Dr. Debojyoti Chatterjee,

Reader, Department of Physics,

University of Delhi, Delhi, British India

Sub: Collaboration for Research

Dr D. Chatterjee,

I have had the pleasure of going through your research paper entitled,

‘Foray into Future and a Peek into Past: A Possible Study of an Impossible Space-Time Continuum,’ published in Physics Today Journal of Volume 3 Issue II.

I have come across two additional papers in which you elaborately discuss the issues related to the barriers of time travel. I am currently working as a researcher under the guidance of Dr. Yoko Fusae in the field of robotics. We have been exploring the same area but encountered roadblocks in the calculations, whereas you have made significant progress. We look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with you.

Waiting for an affirmative response.

Yours sincerely,

Dr. Hana Saito

4th April, 1939,

13:00 hours

Hana is carrying a carton filled with research papers and reference materials. She is unable to carry it all by herself, but she manages, and finally, the box lands upon the side table of her supervisor. Dr. Fusae carefully goes through the reference materials and rings a bell.

The departmental peon arrives: “Coffee for us.”

She turns towards Hana. “We are going to go through all the materials and take down notes, and after that, we are going to burn everything.”

Hana seems to be happy; she understands that Dr. Fusae is already into the project, thus she simply nods her head. Dr. Fusae lights up a cigarette. While sipping the coffee, Dr. Fusae says, “Dr. Patil has confirmed the calculations, and we are good to go. I am going to apply for the fund, but do not speak about it unless it is done.”

The coffee cups had been refilled, the room smelled of roasted coffee, and these two caffeine-pumped ladies finished their work after almost 12 hours. Hana felt the pangs of hunger; she was scared of her stomach pain. Dr. Fusae and Dr. Saito have been discussing, nodding their heads. Dr. Fusae goes towards the miniature board and draws a triangle along with some alphanumeric symbols. Dr. Saito also joins her. They scribble in their respective notebooks, and at around 02:00 pm, they decide to discuss their observations about the research problem. Fusae looks at her watch. “This is going to take longer, Hana; crash at my place.”

The discussion, the discussions, the brain jamming, the argument, and the arguments continued for a few more days, until the day the news arrived.

Hana was provided with a cup of coffee by her mentor.

“You have done a decent job; our project has a sponsor, and we are starting it at 12:05 am tonight. Also, I have seen your typewriter, throw it away; fill up the requisition slip, take my remark, and collect the new typewriter from the University store.”

Hana is happy with the news, but she is perplexed; “The timing seems to be an odd one, Madam.” Dr. Fusae finishes off her cigarette. “Well, we are going incognito with this; the Imperial Army is the sponsor, and we cannot operate during office hours.”

30th June, 1939

Hana receives a call. It was Dr. Fuase: “Hana, get dressed. Dr. Chatterjee arrives at 16:00 hrs.; it’s time to get our guest from the airport.”

Dr. Chatterjee has been an avid traveller, who has frequented European soil several times and had the opportunity to travel to the USA last autumn. But this is his first visit to Japan, and he is ready to explore the land of the rising sun.

Dr. Chatterjee is an established name in the field of physics. He is known among his colleagues as an innovator for his innovative thinking and radiant scholarship. Besides physics, he enjoys studying biology and ancient history, and he is an avid lover of music. He prefers listening to the mellifluous melody of the new-age sensation, Begum Akhtar. He drinks like an Englishman, he walks like an Englishman, and he speaks like an Englishman. He is a household name among the English people of Delhi. However, he hosts secret meetings with a few fellows once a month. These fellows receive a considerable amount of cash from Dr. Chatterjee, and they accumulate chemicals and gunpowder. He receives calls from a mysterious man on an occasional basis. This man might be a mystery to the rest of the folk, but he was his classmate at Presidency College, Calcutta. He was there when this mysterious fellow launched a full assault on one of the British professors who were insulting the Indian ethos. Dr. Chatterjee was there; he is still here….

It was a bumpy flight, but he managed it without any major hiccups. He muttered to himself, “The Land of the Rising Sun.”

He was unable to distinguish the people of Nippon; he was confused by the Mongolian features. He spots the placard with his name. A young lady with a ponytail was holding it, accompanied by a woman with silky salt-and-pepper hair cascading over broad shoulders and a tilted nose. He walks towards them. “I am Dr. Debojyoti Chatterjee, University of Delhi.”

It was followed by the traditional Japanese welcome, which involved bending the upper torso towards the guest.

The three of them got into a car and drove towards the university campus.

Dr. Chatterjee checks into his guesthouse. It had one room with a low-lying bed, a bedside table with a lamp, and a dinner table; unlike the European rooms, there were no chairs in the vicinity. He freshens up within a few minutes and changes into comfortable pajamas. He picks up a newspaper but puts it down due to the language barrier. He heard a knock on the door.

Dr. Fusae and Dr. Saito walked in with a few takeaways. Three of them sit on the mat, and Dr. Chatterjee, for the first time, tastes the traditional Japanese dish, sushi. While sipping a hot beverage, Dr. Fusae laid down a hard-bound ribbon file on the dinner table itself.

The label marker reads: 時間

Dr. Fusae: “Dr. Chatterjee, it is a Japanese script; I am going to read it out for you.”

“The governing body wishes to maintain complete secrecy; thus, all paperwork will be in our native language, and we wish to stay away from English. Saito will be your translator for the

entire project.” Dr. Chatterjee moves forward, and he lights up a smoke; “Am I working for the Army? Dr. Fusae nods her head.

Dr. Chatterjee: “I am not allowed to work on any project that involves the army; we are heading towards another war, and our British army is exactly on the opposite side of the battlefield unless you can arrange a dummy project.”

Dr. Fusae’s face brightens up; “We will arrange a theoretical study of time continuity in our university, and our actual research will take place in the Shimamoto Shagchai Research Lab, located twenty feet below the old warehouse of the university near abandoned staff quarters.”

The Underground Project: Shimamoto Shanghai Research Lab

Do not go gentle into that good night.

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.2

X, Y & Z shook hands.

Z was feeling exhausted after a long flight, and he immediately retired to his bed. Unlike the Indian counterpart, Japanese beds were low lying and lacked comfort. Y accompanied X to her staff quarters. Dr. Chatterjee was given the code name Z. Dr. Saito took up Y, and Dr. Fusae became X. X, Y, and Z kick-started their project by listing the necessary equipment for Project Chronos. The next few days involved Japanese language acquisition for Z and the collection of raw materials for the experiment. The theoretical framework took almost three months to complete, and when all the necessary stuff appeared, they started building the Chronos, the gateway to peace. The trio has been marooned deep beneath Mother Earth, and they haven’t experienced the warmth of the sun for almost six months. They worked on the dummy project in the university during the late afternoon hours, while they juggled between sleepless nights and the actual experiment. The warmth of the sun and the smell of the earth—they existed in a different reality. An underground tunnel was used to maintain the secrecy of their movement between the main campus and the research laboratory. There has been water leakage, issues with rodents, and yes, a fire accident. But they continued their work, and X has been dealing with the men in uniform. Z noticed the chronic pain suffered by Y, Z provided Y with some ayurvedic tablets. The recurring pain didn’t recur ever again. Y and Z take occasional breaks whenever X attends a meeting with the people of the governing body.

Every time there is a meeting, X becomes frustrated and bangs the file on the lab table. “They are always rushing us; it’s driving me crazy; I might just lose my mind.” Y and Z try to calm her down with tea and Nissan noodles.

Y and Z giggle, sharing a nickname for her: Madam Madex.

Study of Madam Madex, 1941

Main Samay Hoon3

(Translated: I am the TIME)

The underground project took two and a half years to complete; the testing time arrived during the last quarter of 1941. Madam Madex entered the command on Chronos: “I want to know the fate of Nippon.”. Chronos replied, “Total Wasteland after getting bombed at the atomic level.” Madam Madex shivered, “Is there any way to change it?”

Chronos replied, “Gather the technology from the future, and visit the Lab of Sir Isaac, but you have to pay a price.”

Madam shivered and replied, “I have all the wealth of Samurai clans and Nipponese Industry.”

Chronos smirked, “In the 25th Century, A.D, we don’t have bogus things like money, material position, wealth, religion, caste, which you cave people value so much. It is owned by the state; however, we lack one thing, the emotion of the mind.” Madam Madex was dumbfounded. “How am I supposed to do that?”. Chronos said, “You have to volunteer yourself to be a part of an experiment in our world known as VK.” Chronos said, “I am sending you our best agent known for robotic compassion, Shakira, who will guide you.”

Madam Madex and Chronos’ device sealed the deal by writing a futuristic version of Morse Code, where the ‘TAPS’ was replaced with ‘RAPS’ in Viper Code (a 25th-century updated variation of Python code)

Madam renamed Shakira to Shikchu. Along with Dr. Chatterjee and Dr. Saito, they spent endless nights building BDRU based on the technologies of the future, which saved Nippon from the horrors of the Atomic Bombs in the future.

Nippon later repaid the so-called Super Power by returning the gift and dropping it on a harbour that looked like a gem from an airborne vehicle, but it didn’t kill the people; rather, they laughed and sneezed for one week at a stretch. Snuff Bomb, the brainchild of one of the greatest Indian inventors, an acquaintance of Dr. Chatterjee. On the eve of 20th August 1945, Madam Madex honoured the deal and, along with Shikchu, she travelled to 25th Century Earth, now renamed as “VK”.

28th August 1945: Future Awaits : Summary of an Unofficial Newspaper Report in Japan

Madam Madex, the lead researcher of Shimamoto Shagchai Research Lab, has been missing since last week. She was responsible for new horizons in the field of robotics. The wise land of Nippon owes much of its robotic inventions to her, which have contributed immensely to the growth of the nation.

Last month, in August, a so-called Superpower known for preaching peace and humanity tried to bomb the land of Samurai soldiers. But the message was intercepted by our agents, and the Bomb Disposal Robotic Units (BDRU) were deployed into the air under the leadership of Madam Madex.

The unit was airdropped from an unprecedented height, and it camouflaged itself into clouds. It was invisible to naked, untrained eyes. The so-called enemy dropped two bombs invented by Dr.Close Fearmar across two places of Nippon, Naga ki Saki, and Hiro Di Shima. Madam Madex, who was monitoring the whole process, received the alarm of two atomic devices entering the radar of BDRU. She signalled her ponytailed assistant to operate the Positronic Android Robot Assistant, Shikchu. Shikchu got into action.

Inside the short-micro-mini circuit of BDRU, a light flickered, and the ‘Operation Mesh’ was activated. An invisible mesh was formed between all the units of BDRU, and it caught hold of ‘Fat Asshole’ and ‘Little Piece of Shit’. Shikchu was not only a robot, but it had a brain of its own, a Positronic Brain. The Positronic Brain was the brainchild of one of the greatest minds of the 20th century, Isaac Asimov. Other countries developed the BDRU model to deal with atomic bombs. There were many atomic bombings upon earth, but BDRU cloaked in clouds, acting as the Protector of Earth, protecting it every single time.

Madam Madex, an elite researcher, was enamoured with the notion of time travel. She made one such device named Chronos, which was based on the groundbreaking research paper, ‘The Foray into Future and a Peek into Past; A Possible Study of an Impossible Space Time Continuum’ by Dr. Debojyoti Chatterjee, University of Delhi, 1936.

28th August, 1945 Earth: 25th Century AD, Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam

to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield4

Chronos, the eighth wonder, wanders across the vales of time and space. Shikchu is in charge of the control panel. Madam Madex occupies a seat beside Shikchu. She is numb, she is awestruck, and she is happy. She has left behind her colleagues, her workplace, and her family and yes, her nation. She is astounded to witness the conspicuous display of light beams resembling laser rays outside the time machine. She is enjoying being a witness to the advancement of science. She is content. Everything is happening, or rather, everything happens at a slow pace, while traveling through time. It is ironic to label it as ‘slow pace’. It is what it is….

Shikchu drives while Madam Madex enjoys the view. Madam Madex maintains a diary and she notes down every detail, with an acumen of scientific temperament. She rests, she eats food pills, and she consumes water pills, but Shikchu drives, Shikchu goes on and on…

Once in a while, Madam commands Shikchu : “Time to plug in and charge.”

If we consider the Standard Greenwich time, Chronos took almost one hundred and fifty days to cover the distance; however, as per my calculation, it was just seven and a half days.

A mild jerking followed by tremendous turbulence, and Chronos landed upon a gigantic V- shaped pad.

Chronos has arrived on another Earth. The sky’s still blue, and so are the water bodies. Greenery is abundant all across the earth. Madam Madex takes her own sweet time to adjust to the vastness of the verdant green carpet. She breathes in, she breathes out, a lesson by Dr. Chatterjee.

Beneath the V-pad, Madex spots a placard: “Welcome, Dr. Fuase and Shikchu.” A suspended dias appears in front of them, accompanied by a mild metallic voice: “Kindly step in.”

Madam Madex and Shikchu step in, and they arrive at the gate of the International V- Space Center. The dias transforms into a two-seater car with adjustable windows, a navigation panel, an expanded luggage area, and ample legroom for both passengers. It was driverless, it was without any explanation.

The control panel displays: Location: International V- Space Center Destiny: Vaikuntha De La Palace, Bose-Einstein Bay Area (West). ETA: 01

Madam Madex adjusts herself to enjoy the green view, but the destination arrives within the blink of an eye.

As soon as the car arrives, a floating platform appears, and she mounts it. She witnesses a shower of flower petals and a sweet aroma, and she gets down in front of the main gate of the most luxurious hotel in the city of Hariayppam, the Capital city, named after the Old Gods of original Earth known as Dharitri. They received a royal salute. Sir Ray De Asimov, the world’s leading chief scientist, welcomed her to the golden suite of Vaikuntha De La Palace, one of the most luxurious hotels in VK.

Madam Madex toured around VK. She could feel the power of the logical mind over the emotional mind. Everything was governed by the code of law, and the tenets of the society ruled over its members. There was an absolute absence of illness or hunger. It was not a state of plenty but a state of need governed by the ancient rules of economics: supply and demand.

There were active bodies that conducted extensive surveys regarding the nutritional needs, medicinal needs, and financial aspects. In turn, people were content; happiness was not a distant phenomenon but a part of life. Happiness index didn’t exist; grief was a fossilised phenomenon. It was the absence of pain that made life stable. Mental agonies and physical pain were part of the myth. Life expectancy was between 130 and 150 years. Euthanasia was allowed, and the transfer of one’s soul to a younger body was an ordinary phenomenon. There have been no major wars for the last two centuries. Religion was allowed in literature and culture. It was not a part of the identity anymore. Language wars were over, and ethnic clashes were alive in the fables of great-grandmothers. Humans existed like humanoids devoid of pain, struggle, jealousy, and all human emotions. There was hardly any distinction between humans and humanoids.

It resulted in a brave new world; however, there were poets, troubadours, and authors who were still aware of those emotions.

Science moved like a vector phenomenon, directed towards the betterment of society. Space Biology, Robotology (an advanced form of robotics and biology), and Advanced Genetics were extensively funded avenues of the state. It conducted various experiments based on the future of the human-humanoid kind. Unlike its earthen counterpart, it never conducted any unethical experiments. There were human volunteers for various tests except the Neo Mendelian test, which aspired to create a hybrid known as “Moreauoid”. It was a crossbreed between a humanoid and humans. None of the citizens came forward to be a part of the trial, not because of the potential life threats, but because they didn’t want to part away from the Vasudev Kutumkambh, a place where everyone lived a stable life. They couldn’t be trapped under the need for materialistic stuff. It was stalled; it was stopped for a while until Madam Madex agreed to step in as a human volunteer in exchange for advanced technological aid.

Madam Madex has been living here for a few months. She had been a scientist, and she had been a human of logic, but her adaptation to the society of VK made her more distant from her human emotions, except the emotion known as loyalty. But the emotions still existed deep beneath her conscious mind. She knew that the fate of the nation was the fate of her own life.

Madam Madex was ready to be the human part of the stalled project, “Moreauoid”. Madam Madex volunteered herself to be the subject of a few lab experiments where her mind and her heart were studied. The experiment led to some changes in her mind and body. She experienced some robotic compassion for the Shikchu, and Shikchu too suffered some unknown anomalies, leading to the worst possible thing: the most dangerous human compassion is known as ‘Ishq’. They dated for some time and became the first couple in the history of Earth, Super Earth, the Galaxy, the Brahmand, and the Milky Way to consummate their marriage as a human and a humanoid. Madam Madex felt the joy of motherhood when she held her baby for the first time. The baby looked into the eyes of the mothers, Madex and Shikchu.

The baby winked and then cried out, “Yaba Yaba Doooooooo.” They lived happily ever after; the Baby was named ‘Machu’. Machu became the wonder child, with the strength and knowledge of an android mother and the sense of compassion of a human mother. Machu was hailed as the giant leap in human-humanoid evolution by Dr. Ray De Asimov.

…………………Meanwhile, upon Earth Prime, Dharitri, the course of history altered. The Imperial Army of Nippon didn’t surrender to the Superpower of the West and……………

References

1 H.G. Wells, The Time Machine

2 Dylan Thomas’ , “Do not go gentle into that good night”

3 Voiced by Harish Bhimani in B.R. Chopra’s TV Series Mahabharat

4 Tennyson’s, “Ulysses”

 

 

Tags: Debraj Moulick, English Section, Kalpabiswa, দশম বর্ষ প্রথম সংখ্যা