596: The Navigator

The Navigator

The lesson began with Ling Xin talking about our Navigators, as expected. Back in the auditorium, Tian Lin had said we would get to learn more about these mysterious little watches in our homerooms, so here it was.1

"To begin, your Navigator should have six different selections from the main menu," she said warmly, before rapidly changing tone to a somewhat emotionless style. "If it doesn't, go to the Administration Campus after class and see the IT office for help. There shouldn't be any problems, though, so let's start with the top one: Inbox."

Pretty self-explanatory, I would say, but there probably was more to it than just what the surface said. And as Ling Xin's explanation came, that question answered itself.

"The inbox feature is perhaps the most important one on this list, hence why it is placed at the top," Ling Xin said, using some sort of software to project her Navigator's screen onto the electronic board behind her (yes, even teachers and other faculty members had their own Navigators, though different from the student models I would assume).

The board displayed an exact replica of the students' Navigator model for easy understanding, though I was nearly certain the real Navigator she used (probably switched via a toggle feature of some sort) was different. She tapped into the [Inbox] screen via her finger, and the hologram instantly changed.

The main menu screen was replaced by two boxes of pretty much even length and equal width, and at the top, the word 'Inbox' was written in a sci-fi themed space font. Below that, there was a single row filled in the left box, listing out a message:

[Welcome to Counterhex Academy]

[Greetings, all students of Counterhex Academy. This email's intent is to...]

The second line beginning the email ended with a '...' because the row was not enough to capture the whole email message (obviously), and the rows were fixed in width, meaning there was no other option but to use something like this.

"Now, all of you should see this message if you open your Inboxes via your Navigator. I would say read it over, but really, it's so useless that there's no point. It hardly teaches you anything important, and is more of a formality, really. So, moving on - you can select an email from the left box here to view it, and in the right-side box, the email's contents will be displayed. Pretty simple."

She tapped on the welcome email to demonstrate, then hovered her ruler over three buttons at the top, above the email title on the right-side box of the screen. They were, in order, a curved arrow pointing left, a trash can, and a straight arrow pointing right.

"These are the function buttons," Ling Xin explained in a somewhat bored tone. "The first is reply, the second is delete, and the third is forward. Deleted emails can still be retrieved from the Deleted Files inbox for 30 days, accessible from that tiny button in the top right corner there, so don't worry too much if you accidentally delete something important. That's the basic rundown of the email feature, the rest you can figure out on your own. Moving on..."

Next up was the IM - Instant Messages - feature, or simply Messages for short, as displayed on the menu. As expected, it worked like a texting app on a phone, and was quite similar to emails, as a matter of fact. The only difference was that it was more convenient, and... well, 'instant'. If private messaging someone, it was better to use the Messages feature instead of Emails, whereas Emails would be better for messages directed towards a group.

Before long, however, someone grew tired of this boring explanation, and raised his hand. It was the grey-haired dude from the exam center - an Elite.

"Ms. Lixia, I don't mean to be rude, but... this is all stuff we can figure out on our own. It's just emails and text messages - we've all used them before, just in different forms. Can we please move on to something more... interesting?"

"Interesting, huh..." Ling Xin gave a soft, subtle, and somewhat suggestive chuckle. "Once you actually get into it, you won't be saying that anymore... but I digress. You've used emails and instant messages before... of course I know that. But the Navigator is not as simple as your smartphone or laptop. For instance... you already know that the device's AI has been connected to your brain as a result of the registration process, correct?"

The class nodded, signaling they knew.

"Well, because of that, whenever you receive a new email or instant message, the notification will be sent directly into your head. Eventually, you will even be able to use your Navigator without even tapping on it - just a mere thought is enough. But that will take time and practice, as the mind is a complex matter."

"Directly into our head...? As in, like somebody talking to us in our minds?" Feng Mian asked, to which Ling Xin nodded.

"Quite so. And of course, the example that I listed was but one of the many unique features the Navigator has that your average run-of-the-mill portable devices don't. Although some of its functionalities are very basic and seen everyday, it is important to note the Navigator's differences in approach and get used to them - for as you will soon find out in the coming weeks, months, and years, the Navigator will become an essential part of your life as a member of the Counterhex Force, along with your duo partners."

The students, naturally, were still confused, but Ling Xin carried on with her walkthrough of the Navigator regardless. Even I couldn't exactly say I understood, but basically, the Navigator was going to become an essential tool later on...? I felt like she was hinting at something, but I couldn't be sure.

Either way, what concerned me more was the part about our 'duo' partners. If what Ling Xin said was true, then that would mean... well, Claire would become an essential part of my life.

And truth to be told? I didn't know how to feel about that.

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