Hermes responded without much hesitation. “Hmm... Ideally, I’d build a large structure in such a way that there’s no overt influence from the wind. Then, I would throw a ball from the same position multiple times, making a record of how it flew each time... And once I reach an average of one hundred meters or so, I could then determine how to repeat my throw based on the direction of the wind.”
“Yes, one would naturally come to that conclusion. You can objectively explain the matter by saying that, under these conditions, this is what happened.” The important part is that people would then be able to recreate it. Of course, it would be difficult to find the same kind of person to throw the ball each time, but if you were to come up with criteria, like they must be in their twenties and must have experience with sports, you can create a somewhat similar setup. That is a scientific approach.
“Isn’t that obvious though?” Hermes asked after a pause.
“You would think so, right?” In reality, this was quite a high-level way of thinking. The process behind holding an experiment to prove a hypothesis is a modern way of thinking. While some people had done that before the modern era, it had not become standard in the academic field. Instead, hypotheses were being spread around as accepted theories, in turn becoming common knowledge. A society that still attributed diseases to the four major elements was an adorable thing; people who got sick were sometimes criminals, which led to the idea that all sick people were criminals. Those outside our research laboratory probably were not too clued up on this scientific approach. “The crown prince probably thought something like this: ‘Dragons can fly. Therefore, if we mimic what they do, our aircraft will fly. So let’s make a model of a dragon, have it flap its wings like a dragon, and then it will be able to fly.’”
“A wonderfully crude theory. I’ve never seen a dragon fly, but the way birds and bats do it is so quick and intricate that it’s hard to see with your own eyes.” If you had a slow-motion camera, you could probably get a good idea. I sometimes want to believe there’s a certain type of secret magic that makes animals fly.
“If we were to attempt to recreate their complicated movements, it would be more complicated to make than a biplane,” I responded.
“The fact birds and such can fly like that is amazing. It must feel amazing to soar through the air like that.” Hermes was looking up at a hawk that was gliding through the air before finding its prey, a small bird. It began to chase after it. The small bird, as well as the hawk chasing it, flew around in the sky with an understanding of aerodynamics we had yet to get to grips with. “But I guess that’s too much of a reach for us. We first need to learn how to get up into the sky.” Hermes looked back down.
There was a large gathering of people at the trial “airfield” just past the trial farm fields on the outskirts of the territory. Although we were quite far away, we were able to hear a commotion from the crowd.
“Is that what I think it is?” I asked Hermes.
“It has to be; it looks exactly like it!”
“But it is huge. It’s so imposing.” The crowd was filled with people, city folk, villagers, and refugees alike. They had made their way here today for this.
“Today is just supposed to be an experiment, not the actual unveiling.” It sounded like a complaint, but Hermes was actually ecstatic. Everyone had gathered here today to see an aircraft fly. Even though it was not a formal event, guards had been posted around the area to help control the crowds since there were a lot of people. Just ten years ago, the idea of human beings being able to fly was thought of as a dream. However, they had come together to see it become a reality.
While the crowd looked on, staff members were running about energetically getting everything prepared. The main attraction was the radial engine-powered propeller airplane, the latest breakthrough from our very own research laboratory. Its appearance was so simple that it could be mistaken for a model airplane. It had a wooden frame with biplane-style wings carefully made with cloth. It would not be too unfair to say it resembled a bird’s skeleton. The difference was the engine inside that generated enough power to rival fifty horses. It was a genuine living bird. Its heart was made from steel and cast iron, with a five-cylinder radial engine that burned ethanol and pulsated energy throughout. It was a man-made aircraft that would be able to soar through the sky.
“Well, I’ll be off. Make sure you watch, Ash.” Hermes headed off toward the aircraft, looking more excited than anyone there. Nobody else would be taking his place. Hermes’s beloved engine was to be fired up by its creator. The engine, the first iteration of which almost guided Hermes to the heavens, fired up with a healthy sound. The staff members all shouted out that they had completed their preparations. Their reports were full of hope. The crowd began to cheer, wondering what would happen and wondering what they would be witness to. I looked around at everyone’s expressions, and they all seemed to be feeling the same way.
“Now, everyone, feast your eyes on this.” My chest was bursting with pride.
The sound of the radial engine’s pistons started to get louder. The sound of the crankshaft joined it as the propeller began to kick in. The laborers let out cheers as they pushed the aircraft. The wheels, spurred on both by manpower and the engine, began to speed up on the makeshift runway. The wind invited the aircraft forth, welcoming its man-made wings.
“Go,” someone said.
“It’s gonna fly,” someone laughed.
Eventually, the voices all came together.
“Fly! Fly away!” Of course, they did not need to tell the wings to do that. It was going to fly anyway. Thanks to the wind blowing in the right direction. Thanks to our propeller. Thanks to the people who pushed it on its way. They had all become the power that would allow our craft to soar.
Finally, there was our final source of power that had been with us this whole time. Those who supported the staff when they were deep in research. Those that brought the documents telling us how to shape the wings. The people who wrote that down. Those who had tried to make it a reality before recording it down in a document. Countless people, unknown people, were pushing the aircraft on its way. While the crowd cheered, the sound of the wheels disappeared, and the wings that so many people had helped to make began to distance themselves from the earth. I’ll be all right now, It was saying as it soared through the sky. You don’t need to help me from here on out. I can do this all on my own.
✦ ✦ ✦
We all waved at the aircraft as it flew. Everyone was smiling with satisfaction at what they had built, what they had accumulated, and what we will receive as we progress. I was able to see everyone from our past in the crowd. Those who should have been buried in the passage of time but had thought to connect the past to the future. People who were grand and sublime, noble and glamorous, boisterous and serene—they had all fought heart-pounding battles. They were the phantoms of those who had jumped through time in order to pass on their knowledge to the people of today. Everyone, absolutely everyone, was my senior and was worthy of respect. Suddenly, they all looked back at me. I did not recognize any of their faces. They did not even have faces. Yet, I knew everything about them. One was holding a book and passed it to me.
I wonder what book this is. Wait, I shouldn’t even have a book. There’s nothing in my hands. They aren’t real, they don’t actually exist...but I knew them, and I knew this book. I had simply forgotten. As I struggled to remember, another person approached me and handed me a book. It continued. They all continued to hand me one book after the other. Ah, I know. I know everything. I know everyone. They had entrusted this book to me. And with their trust, it was up to me to bring back the knowledge from the early civilization...
The last person handed me a book.
I know. I know who you are. But I can’t remember. I’m sorry. I forgot something really important. The phantoms began to fade. History began to disappear. Fragments of my memory glided across a blank sheet of paper.
“You don’t have to be sad.” A voice traveled from deep within my memory. “Everything is in there.”
A hand from the past signaled to my hands. A light had been left in the place of the book, and it began to envelop my hands.