by Drew Cordell
The screen powers on and the camera flickers. An elderly man moves into the frame. It’s me, only I’m twenty-five years older and don’t look healthy. My face is gaunt and pale, and I’ve got an unkempt beard that doesn’t mask my sunken cheeks hollowed with sickness. The old man clears his throat with a rattling cough. He winces, apparently feeling intense pain.
“My name is Jacob Ashton. I’m sending this message through the Paragon Relay hoping it finds you well. It’s hard to believe this message made it out of my reality and into yours, and it’s even harder to believe you now have the power to prevent my existence.” He chuckles briefly, losing control and coughing in a fit before continuing.
“I live in an Omniscient society. Absolute Knowledge is real, and humanity is all but extinct now, replaced by the Ascendants. The royalty of Olympus are the only remaining humans, and even now, it’s no longer a question of if we’ll die, but when. I’ve found a way to avoid this. All of it. If you are me, Jacob Ashton, then it’s already worked. Since it has worked, you’re responsible for making it work again. If you don’t then you may face my reality when you wake up one day, a reality where the Omniscience Engine won. If you’re here, then you’ve defeated it once, but your responsibility isn’t lifted.”
He coughs heavily, wiping his mouth with a handkerchief. He looks at the handkerchief, grimaces, then continues. “I’m including the schematics for the completed version of Mindshift and an advanced robot that can store a being indefinitely. I’m sure you know exactly what I’m talking about. In addition, I’m also sending the instructions on how to build a Transfinite sphere which will allow another version of you to come back to this time and do it all again. Dad, you’re the one who will need to build the sphere for me. I tried to break my loop, and I failed. I tried to track it down to the origin, but I can’t find it. I don’t know if the Omniscience Engine can ever be destroyed, but you can vanquish it from your reality which is as much of a victory as you need to live a fulfilling life.”
The haggard man considers his next words. “Simply put, if the Omniscience Engine gets any of these schematics, your world will end. I’m sending them hoping you can prevent my reality, because if you don’t, everyone is dead anyway. To my younger better-looking self, you need to assist our father with constructing the very things that got you here in the first place. Confusing, I know, but it’s necessary to preserve your reality which is almost certainly better than the one I live in. Complete your task, and you can live the rest of your days in peace in a reality free of the Omniscience Engine. I have no idea what will happen if you fail. Don’t fail. I give my life so you may have a better one free from the Omniscience Engine. Our father has the tech, now help him program the robot with your recorded projections so you may return to your same future. You need only bring the letters written by your father; everything else will be provided to you in your past. I’m out of time. Good luck.”
The screen shakes, and a bolt of energy hits the older version of me in the chest, punching all the way through in a cloud of red mist. Terrifying robots unlike anything I’ve ever seen appear on the screen for a brief second before everything goes black and the video feed cuts out.
I’m standing in silence. None of it makes sense, and my brain feels like it’s splitting in half.
I breathe deeply, doing everything in my power not to lose my mind. “You want to tell me how this is possible?”
“I’m still not sure how Transfinite tech works, but I’m building that sphere you’re holding,” he says. “When dealing with the Transfinite, physical law doesn’t apply. Watch this.”
My father opens up a locked case and pulls a half-sphere out. It’s identical to the sphere I’m holding, and the inner workings look like they’re from another world. It’s archaic almost, and there doesn’t seem to be any electronics, only etched, glowing metal. He reaches forward onto the desk and pulls a permanent marker from a jar of pens and pencils even though there isn’t any paper in sight.
“That’s the sphere that was in the box from me, right?” he asks before laughing. “Of course it is.” He holds his unfinished sphere in front of me then uncaps the marker. “It has to be permanent marker, otherwise this shouldn’t work. Hell, I’m not even sure this is going to work the way I intend.”
Taking the marker, he draws a small line across the surface of his creation where there aren’t any rotating parts. I almost drop the sphere I’m holding when the line he’s drawing starts materializing on my version of the orb. The line isn’t as dark, but it’s the same line and it doesn’t seem like a cheap parlor trick. To me, it’s real magic.
“How the hell?” I start.
He grins. “Well look at that. It worked. It’s due to a variant of the bootstrap effect. Again, the Transfinite isn’t bound by physical law like we are. These two spheres are the exact same object, yet they have no discernable point of origin because you’re holding something I have yet to finish. When I mark on my version, which is technically the same object you’re holding, the changes occur on all instances of the object linked to this reality in this point in time.”
My brain is struggling to wrap itself around the concept. “So what is the Transfinite then?”
“It’s tech that utilizes transfinite numbers. The Transfinite is the only way to break physical law, to go beyond the scope of the finite. The Omniscience Engine is trying to become omniscient or infinite, when really the true goal is for it to exceed the infinite. We’re talking about the underlying code of the universe. You’re holding a small piece of that code and with it, we have the opportunity to destroy the Omniscience Engine again. Since you’ve already done it once, then we know it can and will be done again. Work with me, and you’ll preserve the life you know. Don’t and you may never see your family again.”
“So if I don’t do what’s already been done, then I go back to a world where the Omniscience Engine still exists?”
“Correct. You need to do this so the loop continues. In theory, this scenario has been played out, is playing out, and has yet to be played out an infinite number of times.”
I shake my head. “Obviously it hasn’t worked and the Omniscience Engine won’t be destroyed for good if things always repeat the same way. There has to be a missing piece we aren’t seeing,” I say, frustrated now.
My dad nods. “Yes, there must be. But if you go looking for it, you will risk everything and everyone you love in the process. I don’t think you should do that. Paradoxes would have you believe you will always make the same decisions, but I think this sphere gives you the power to choose.”
The searing memories are still fresh on my mind. “It has taken me a lot of time to forgive myself for a lot of what happened over twenty years ago. I’m trying not to think about what would happen if things were to change, if I were to change them,” I say. I’m not willing to pay the price of erasing my mistakes, though. I’m not willing to risk losing Kimberly and Mary.
“I think that is probably for the best.”
“How can I help you so I can be done with all of this?”
“Your job is to help me program the robot to assist you and make sure it has everything—and will do everything—to allow a past version of yourself in this reality to accomplish everything you already have. That’s why you have to record your projections.”
The reality of the situation is grave and simple. Either I do this, or I might never see Mary and Kimberly again. “So why bring me here before I’m done recording the projections?”
“Because that’s what happened before, apparently. Remember, I have no idea how to program the robot; I’m relying on you for that. I just kept this interceptor running so I could catch you when you jumped. I had no idea when you’d show up, only that you would. If you still have something to do in your present, then go back after we’ve talked and finish it up.”
“How will I make it back?”
“You’ll come back the same way you got here in the first place. Just use the sphere. Crea
te a Paragon Thought, and you’ll find the Transfinite can be manipulated. For some reason, we have the capability of manipulating the Transfinite Code, which is what gives us power over physical law with some degree of control. I doubt we’re the only ones, but that’s why the Omniscience Engine is so desperately searching out Paragon Thoughts. It’s looking for individuals who can manipulate the Transfinite to decode information from a future version of itself.”
The pieces are starting to fall into place.
I shrug. “And what happens when I’m done helping you? I just live my life without you again?”
“You have to. My life is here, and while it is fleeting, I still have time to give you a better life. I’m not going to manipulate the Transfinite to save myself. We have to be responsible with the Transfinite, or we’re no better than what we’re trying to destroy.”
“You’re making it sound like there are no limits to what this technology can do.”
“It’s incalculable. We’re just dabbling on the surface; we don’t want to go any deeper than we have to. It’s a necessary evil to destroy the Omniscience Engine again and again, but we can’t go diving deeper into the tech. This isn’t something we should want to understand.”
“I’m sorry for all the questions. I’m just trying to get a better understanding of this situation. Do you know how Paragon Thoughts work?”
“Barely. I know that they are snippets of Transfinite Code organically discovered. The Omniscience Engine, as it exists within the scope of now and the start of the project, receives packets of information from future versions of itself from linear reality. Whenever a Paragon Thought is discovered, the Omniscience Engine unlocks new technology from a future version of itself by decoding deep-space radio waves. When it decodes new information, it will include instructions on information to send back into space. Essentially, it’s sending back information that it has already decoded because it always has and always will, and that’s the only way it would have acquired the technology in the first place. In theory, there are infinite Omniscience Engines across infinite realities. Each one is in a separate state of progress, but the outcome is already determined. When the project was started, it was already finished. When the project was finished, it was just getting started. Our goal is to get you back to your life and isolate your reality from the scope of the Omniscience Engine, not break a cycle built from pursuing something with impossible danger and complexity.”
“Even though the Omniscience Engine was destroyed over twenty years ago for me?”
He nods. “Yes, it was only destroyed because of the work you have done with me—the work we’re going to do now. Don’t do what you’ve already done, and you return to a non-linear reality where life as you know it is gone forever and replaced by God knows what.”
“Forgive me for not understanding all of this. Information can’t travel across different non-linear realities?” I ask.
“No idea. You exist here in a state of existence different from what I’m experiencing. Just like me marking the sphere, if something happens to your thirteen-year old self which is at home with your mother right now, then it should affect you. Your actions here directly influence the outcome of all other events leading to your life in your present. It’s all about perspective. You’re not supposed to be here, and there are consequences if you alter the past.”
I don’t know how to word my question. “The message from me. How could I have known what to do the first time I ever came back?”
“I can’t answer that, but you’ve seen the truth. We don’t need to understand everything, just enough so we can end this for good. You have to promise me you’ll destroy the tech once you’re done; it can’t exist in your reality. Live the rest of your life with your family in a world without the Omniscience Engine. When you do, you will pass along the torch to the next one and this process will repeat itself.”
“What about Edgar or Marwin? Can they help me?”
My dad raises a hand, pursing his lips. “I shouldn’t know anything about your present. My work here isn’t done, and again, we don’t want anything to change. This is for you and you alone. You can’t involve anyone else.”
“What determines if reality is linear then?”
My dad takes a small whiteboard from his desk, grabbing a marker and drawing two circles, connecting them with a line. “If this is where we currently exist,” he says, pointing the marker to the first circle, “and this is where you’re from,” he points to the other circle, “then this is linear. There is one discernable path to get from point A to point B. But let’s say you make a change. You interact with the past in a way you haven’t before. You then return to point C instead of point B, which you know as your reality. The variation between those realities is probably tied to the impact of changing a piece of the past. Smaller changes in actions result in smaller variations in the determination of what point C consists of. Either way, you’re never coming back to the same point A again because for you, that past has already been changed. I would imagine it is hard to get to point C, and you’re more likely to do what you have always done and stay on a linear track. It is for that same reason information cannot travel across non-linear realities, why the Omniscience Engine is not always in a state of completion across all possible realities and scopes of time. I imagine it is trying to overcome that even if it has already discovered the Transfinite.”
“This is too much for right now,” I say. Everything is too real. I can’t be imagining this. “I just want to get back to my family, to not have to worry about this stuff anymore.”
“I know, and I’m going to help you do that. Finish your work, come back, and we will work through this together.”
“Okay. Do you have any advice?” I ask, holding the sphere in shaking hands. I’m terrified my time here has stolen time away from my family in my present. The thought of miscalculating my return and arriving years later sends discomfort lurching through my gut.
I have more work to do recording my projections, and it seems like the hardest part is yet to come. I still have one more envelope from my father to open back at home, and he has no idea what’s in it because he hasn’t written it yet… at least the version of him who I’m speaking with hasn’t.
“Hold it and generate a Paragon Thought. It should make sense to you and come naturally. You just need to manipulate it and hit the button when you’re ready to jump.”
“And there’s no chance I’ll mess this up and end up somewhere other than my reality?”
He shrugs. “As long as you have the sphere, you’re not in any danger. It’s supposed to be easy for an Unbound to use, so I don’t think you’ll have any problems. You’re the designer after all. I need to turn off my relay, so you’ll need to find your own way back to me once you’ve wrapped up your present obligations.”
“Okay,” I say, walking forward and wrapping him in a hug. “I love you, Dad,” I say, feeling emotion bubble up. I want nothing more than to go grab some groceries and eat a meal with him and my mom, but I know I can’t. I have to think about my family waiting for me in New Olympus, and I can’t do anything that could compromise their well-being. “I’ll see you soon.”
“See you soon, Son. Good luck. I love you too,” he says.
I hold the sphere in my hands and concentrate, focusing my mind and synthesizing a Paragon Thought. I can create them whenever I want, but it’s still a taxing process and I know I won’t be able to record any more projections tonight. My mind sharpens, and the glowing symbols of the sphere I’m holding tear off and float in front of my eyes, burning greenish-blue and rearranging themselves into a line. As I twist the sphere in my hands, the symbols shift and start to make sense. They aren’t anything I’ve ever seen, but they convey a natural, intuitive understanding somewhere deep within my mind. I arrange the sequence of symbols, and they start to glow gold. Holding my Paragon Thought and retaining my focus, I press the button on the top of the sphere and let the web of ethereal energy encapsulate
me. I feel the familiar jolt of motion, close my eyes as the light becomes overwhelming, and then open them once I’m still.
I’m sitting in my office, holding the sphere which is the only thing glowing in the pitch-black darkness.
I check the clock next to my desk, activating the holo display. It reads 1:26 AM. I left during the night, not sure of the exact time, but it was definitely before 1:26. I grope around for my phone, finding it and pressing the power button. It’s still the 13th, so I was gone less than a day, probably only a few minutes. When I used the sphere to return to my present, I hadn’t programmed it in any way I could remember now, I had simply manipulated the device with the help of a Paragon Thought. I wasn’t sleeping, and it wasn’t a projection either. I am sure of that now. I really spoke with my father, and everything he told me was the truth. I still have projections to record, but I’m unable to continue tonight. My brain feels disconnected, numb almost.
I pull on my robe and leave my office after locking the sphere back in its box, content with finishing my projection recordings tomorrow.
2 NEW OLYMPUS
∆∆∆
I wake up groggily and pull off the heavy blankets on top of me, rubbing my eyes and adjusting to the bright sunlight pouring through the windows. It’s a little past eight in the morning, and I’m exhausted. I look next to me and see Mary is already awake. I hear the gentle stream of water in our bathroom and smell her strawberry shampoo floating into our bedroom from the crack under the bathroom doors. It’s the same shampoo she fell in love with when we first arrived in Olympus all those years ago. I push myself out of bed and walk into the bathroom. Mary takes her showers hot, and the bathroom is full of scented steam which warms my skin, still cold from sleep. I walk across the tile to my sink, filling the basin with hot water and scrubbing my face. I spread some shaving cream over my cheeks and shave with my razor before taking off my clothes and opening the door to the shower.