Episode 12: Calanthe

"Calanthe" is the twelfth of the Project Infinity web series.

Plot Summary
The mysterious woman who asked Gun to join her for an excursion is now taking him to Dr. Calanthe Lambton's laboratory. Gun, Josephine, and LIA are inside the small ship as it flies in the South Pacific at night. The woman confirms she has worked with Gun's aunt for twenty years, and that Calanthe has been keeping a close eye on him for a long time.

At the Union headquarters in Royal City, Harrison talks with Camille about how he feels Val isn't the leader he once was. Everything happened so quickly in the beginning; yet the problem with the Rebels is taking a long time to resolve. Camille reminds him of the defective LIA complicating matters. Despite Harrison's fears of mock groups beginning to appear, Camille is confident they will stop all resistance.

Overlooking a harbor in Royal City, Octavia is approached by Blythe. Octavia thinks the Rebels don't stand a chance with a concentrated effort like this. Blythe then asks Octavia if she has been thinking about her brother lately. Octavia says he died in a laboratory accident along with Calanthe Lambton. Blythe questions whether she hasn't considered her brother is alive since Calanthe survived the accident. Octavia says this is something she cannot allow herself to consider. Even if he were alive, she could never face him. She wronged him in the end, and his last words to her were "I hate you."

On an unknown island in the South Pacific, the mysterious woman leads Gun and the others to a hatch in the ground. They all enter and end up in Calanthe's underground laboratory. Calanthe is very happy to see Gun and embraces him right away. She assures the others that extra company is always welcome. She asks Gun if he is being taken care of by the Rebels. She is happy to know he has friends who are looking after him. She says she doesn't have any children of her own, but she always has felt something special with Gun. Gun doesn't hide his confusion on how she survived the laboratory accident. He recalls seeing the images of the flames on television. She chuckles and tells him that is why he is here. She gestures to her laboratory and tells him this is her life's work and the pinnacle of her career. She is calling it Project Infinity, and she wants to share it with him. Gun is also officially introduced to Gail Hillgarth and Nyx.

She begins walking with Gun through her lab. She tells him about his grandfather, Dr. Hugh Lambton, who was a deep space explorer. Calanthe recalls her memories of him with immense fondness claiming "he was so good to her" and was "the only person who ever understood her." From the time she was very young, Calanthe studied by his side and was taught everything he knew. Hugh was fascinated by the stars. His theories were so abstract that he became an outcast within the scientific community. However, he continued his studies and embarked on his most controversial project to date: Project Infinity.

She shows Gun two house flies trapped in clear containers. Both are ten years old. One is alive, and the other is dead. This means the living fly has outlived its typical lifespan by over 130 times. Gun and Josephine stare in awe as Calanthe pulls out a vile of pure stardust or "Infinity." During Hugh's final flight into deep space, he positioned his ship on the outer brim of a supernova and trapped some stardust in an airtight compartment. After freezing and then normalizing it, he found it behaved as a liquid and was no something more than what is typically found in the interstellar medium. It was something entirely new which he called Infinity.

Although Hugh managed to create a moderate supply of Infinity, he died shortly after due to radiation poisoning. On his death bed, he asked Calanthe to continue his work and find the answers he couldn't. From that day on, Calanthe committed herself to honoring his life by advancing Project Infinity. She teamed up with a small group of scientists and worked for the Kingdom of Earth's Abnormal Science Department. Using Infinity, they conducted experiments on plants, animals, and themselves. Some people - like Calanthe - then realize there is a realm all around us that is invisible to us without Infinity. Within this dimension lies all the secrets to the universe. This is God's dimension.

On the Orion in the middle of the night, Lars is seen working on the Gallagher's engine problems. He hopes the new adjustments will prevent it from overheating. Princess Annabelle refuses to go to her room while everyone else is working overtime. Morris is flustered by her once again.

Back in Calanthe's laboratory, Gun is reclined on a chair. Calanthe and her fellow scientists are stumped as to why she can see the Unseen Realm, but they cannot. She wants to take some of Gun's blood to compare it to her own. She is curious as to whether he would see this realm. She has a theory, but he would need to inject himself with Infinity to confirm it. Josephine intervenes to prevent this from happening, but Gun is set on being open to everything since he came here for answers. However, Calanthe reassures them that Gun doesn't have to rush into anything. She hands him a vile of Infinity and tells him she believes he could be the key to everything. She thinks he is very much like her. As she prepares to take a blood sample, Josephine slips out to make an emergency call to Morris. She urges him to come immediately. Morris tells her he will send someone to pick them up and to stay calm.

In the lab, Calanthe explains that one syringe is a weekly dose for a human. Their fallen team members discovered that there are nasty withdrawal symptoms. As she chuckles to herself, Gun asks her if this project is why Val is afraid of her. She tells him Val is afraid of progress and wants to keep everything inside his little cage. He hid his marriage to her sister because he didn't want to look weak. She is certain that he was behind the accident at her laboratory and intended for it to kill her. Gun grits his teeth in anger. Calanthe goes on further to say Val despised her and her grandfather's project. She tells after she saved herself, her project, and some of her team members during the accident, she worked for years trying to discover how she managed to form the protective shield. As Gun saw at Annabelle's execution, she has been successful. However, these shields are only the tip of the iceberg. She believes Gun may be able to uncover the secrets she has been unable to and begin a new era of human beings who command and control the space around them. She begins to become very worked up and tells Gun to do it for herself and his grandfather and kill Val. Suddenly, Lars pushes Calanthe out of the way and grabs Gun. Gun resists being taken away, but Lars continues pulling him out of the laboratory. Gail attempts to stop it from happening, but Calanthe stops him and reminds him that they must not frighten Gun. Though his friends are like Val, she knows Gun will do the right thing and come back. She can wait a little longer because he is the key to everything. She stares closely at Gun's blood sample.

Now on the Adonais and heading back to the island base, Gun lets out his frustration with Lars. Josephine pushes back and tries to convince Gun that his aunt is insane and messing with something that should never be messed with. Gun refuses to hear her out and hints that one of the reasons he is so interested in Project Infinity is the possibility he could bring his mother back. He and Josephine continue to butt heads, and Lars intervenes. He reminds them they have been up all night and are not in their right minds. The sun is beginning to come up as Lars gets a desperate call from Elise. In a panicked state, she tells him to hurry back. They have spotted Union ships heading their way despite a battle date not being selected yet.

Important Events

 * It is revealed that Octavia's brother hates her, and she wronged him somehow.
 * Gun sees Calanthe's laboratory for the first time.
 * Gail Hillgarth and Sage are seen for the first time.
 * Calanthe explains the origins of Project Infinity.
 * Calanthe talks about her father and how she became a scientist.
 * Gun gives a blood sample and is given a vile of Infinity.
 * Calanthe tells Gun she believes Val is behind the laboratory accident that almost killed her.
 * It is revealed Val hid his marriage with Gun's mother, Apolline.
 * Union ships head towards the Rebels' island base without selecting a battle date.

Trivia

 * The Infinity and blood seen inside vials is paint.
 * The reclining chair sound effect in Calanthe's laboratory was taken from a chair in director Keiko's home.
 * The house flies are digitally added in.