Golden Ticket

After a SpaceX mission, Elon Musk suddenly closes down all his businesses and disappears. Eight years later, an old Musk owned factory begins to operate again. I find a lucky golden ticket, inviting me for a tour of the factory.

I stared at the entrance, still in awe of my luck. The crowd behind me shuffled anxiously, waiting for a sight of him, just a single glance of the man that had been missing for eight years.

Next to me were the other four golden ticket winners, their faces a mix of excitement and fear. We were about to enter a reclusive genius's lair and uncover the secrets that the entire world had been anxiously waiting for almost a decade.

The massive gates burst open, yet no human greeted us. Instead, a drone flew out, a screen bearing his likeness.

"Please, follow me," he - or it - said, and the crowd's reaction was a mixture of surprise and disappointment. Eight years, and the man never even bothered to meet them in person?

We followed the drone regardless, feeling the gates shut soundlessly behind us.

The factory was unlike anything I'd ever seen. Machines building machines - and I never saw a single human being. The factory seemed entirely unequipped for even the basics of human existence. I couldn't even spot a bathroom, which was soon remarked upon.

"No pisser insight," one winner remarked scornfully. "You'd think he'd at least cater for someone needing a shit."

A young woman next to him chided him. "You'd think you'd at least have some damn manners. No one asked you to come here."

A teenager, the youngest of the five, walked between them. He put his arms around their shoulders.

"Come on guys, don't start the fighting just yet. This is already too much like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory for my liking."

The last Golden Ticket winner snorted. "Oh, please. I can't wait for a rousing tune from the robotic Oompa Loompas."

"Oh, there'll be plenty of time for that," a voice said, echoing across the factory.

Everyone gasped - even I did, in spite of myself. We all looked upwards, and the great Elon Musk stared back down at us, standing on a board hovering several meters above us. It looked like he hadn't aged a day.

"Sorry about the grand entrance," he continued, slowly floating down to their level, "it's really the only way to get around here."

He opened his hand, revealing five metallic spheres. One for each of them.

"Please put it in your right ear," he said, turning around, "and follow me."

I held the sphere in my hand, reluctantly inserting it into my ear. Immediately the panel I was standing on dislodged and lifted me into the air. I cried out in surprise and lost my balance, but the panel-turned-hoverboard corrected my every movement.

The others had similar experiences, equal parts impressed and nervous. The hoverboards seemed to rely on thought, not positioning - like we literally controlled them with our minds.

He began to fly towards the interior cavern of the factory, motioning for us to follow him. One by one, we all formed into a line behind him.

"Splendid," he said, noting our progress, "you've all got the hang of it."

We descended further and further into caverns, which slowly revealed their enormous size.

"By the way, please, in any circumstance, do not remove your spheres," he said, looking over his shoulder at us.

"The machines won't like that," he said, gazing at his creations.

He shook his head.

"No, the machines won't like that one bit."