Dugan emptied his beer bottle and banged it on the table, calling the room to order. "Gentlemen, present arms!"
Nathan stepped forward first. He had a jerry-rigged hairdryer casing, plugged into his battery bandolier. On the open end, a long, narrow metal loop protruded; it got jostled as he stepped forward, and he had to push it back in. The giggling continued as he flipped the switch, but applause joined in as the metal began to glow.
"Forward!" Wayne was next. His 'blade' rested on his shoulder as he gave a taunting stare to the judges. He had a customized glove grip, dwarfed by the battery case below his hand. When he turned his sword on, several short electric arcs streamed within the loop, generating more excitement in the room.
It was Zoe's turn. Hers looked the most like a sword, albeit with two epee blades in place of a single flat blade. After doing a few flourishes, she activated her weapon; an LED center column shimmered a rainbow stream along its length. Oohs and ahs began.
Dugan's boss, Professor Kozak, was watching a live stream from back in his office. He typed to Dugan, "Is she one of our students?"
Dugan typed back, "I think she's a theater major, actually. But she hangs out with the engineers a lot. I'm assured she made that herself."
"I would think so. Rather distant from your intent, isnt it?"
"It's no harm. The crowd likes her."
"Well, imagine what they'll do when they see the real deal." A moment later, he sent back "Don't mind me. If I had a sense for show biz, I'd be engineering instead of teaching."
Dugan shook his head, but sent no response. He looked over at the judges table, where the last of the Erlymeier flasks were being spray painted. They had awards ready for economy, design, and power. But the final category - functionality - remained unclaimed, after all these years. Dugan wasn't even a TA when he started this contest; now, it seems more likely he'd get tenure before he saw the ideal realized.
A hooded kid emerged from the crowd, holding his creation. It looked like a cybernetic cellist's bow, without string. The stranger adjusted his grip, and a wispy green laser extended from tip to tip. From his pocket, he produced a tennis ball and began to bounce it. On the third bounce, both halves landed, with slightly singed edges.
The crowd cheered. Dugan turned to type the news to Kozak, but the professor had already typed, "CLAP CLAP CLAP."
inspired by Discover Magazine article, "Tractor Beam: Activated!"
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