Consciousness questions reality and existence. But what if consciousness is the answer to every question?
Morgan finds himself in a void, no matter where he envisions. All he finds is pitch black. But there is a faint light too far away. With no options left, Morgan runs, he runs as fast as he can to reach it, a strange sensation of someone passing by hits him, but he chooses to ignore it and reach it.
Morgan jolts awake in Sofia's arms. He slowly opens his eyes, adapting to the light after complete darkness. Tears fill his eyes, his vision blurs until his eyes fall upon Sofia, his rage suddenly explodes, he grits his teeth and strangles Sofia's neck, pinning her down on the floor. She chokes trying to get away from his grip. Jay and Harrison hear him and rush very quickly, pulling him back.
"MORGAN!!!!" Jay shouts, Morgan pauses, he loosens his grip and Sofia moves back, away from Morgan. "You.... you are Jay." Morgan says, his voice cracking. "What happened to you? Did you lose your memories or something?" Jay says while he pulls Morgan back. Harrison rushes to Sofia, giving her a water pouch. Tears fill up her eyes, she shuts her eyes closed, drops of tears falling out of them.
"Morgan!!! Why would you do this to her!" Harrison says, in an angry tone.
"Morgan?" Morgan whispers as he looks down at his arms.
"Why are you acting like this...." Jay asks.
"He... is not Morgan." Sofia murmurs.
A baffled look appears in the eyes of both Jay and Harrison as they look at Sofia.
"I know my..." Sofia pauses for a moment, "I know Morgan, he will never do something like this to me, his tone, his eyes, everything seems different. He looked at me differently, I don't see it. Even if it's my intuition.... "
"I'm... James."
---
On Earth, Morgan, Jay, Sofia and Harrison meet at the agency to discuss the sudden apocalyptic volcanic eruptions and earthquakes.
"Why am I with these guys, those older ones in the last mission were better. If the world is ending, I would rather spend my remaining days with animals instead of these people. I distrust them," Jay mutters to himself.
"This Morgan, he ditched me after our last mission, I had to stay a few hours more to report to the administrator because of him. Wish he died. I hate him the most."
Morgan finally speaks up, "We have a rescue shuttle, it needs nothing more than a little help, we believe Earth won't survive, the world doesn't know it yet until the very last moment. So, my plan is, we take very few known people who can help, and just leave this place, we have a very huge research lab on the Moon. So we just escape there and see if the world actually ends. If it does, we will accept our fate, if it doesn't we will return to Earth because I feel like, if we stay here, we may actually die before the planet."
Sofia keeps checking her nails, "I'll go with you as it assures my survival."
"But we need to thank her, because her speculations helped the rich people like us. And I wish most of the humans die, but Earth survives, so that we can use all the resources and luxury when we return."
Someone enters the room, she stands nearby with her arms crossed. Everyone's eyes fall on her. Morgan smiles, "She is the one... her name is...."
---
"I'm James"
Everyone's eyes fixate on Morgan. "James? What are you talking about. Morgan!" Jay questions.
He looks down at his arms and body, he realizes it is not his. He pushes himself to get to the end of the Habitat module, "This... is Morgan."
"The one who made the blueprints of Hyperfield Aperture. I really don't understand... what is happening." Jay hesitates.
"I thought... I died, this... can't be real... it's a dream." James in Morgan's body pinches himself, he feels extreme pain, a pain that he never felt before being in a hardened reconstructed body.
"Ok, do you remember why we are here?" Harrison asks.
"Why?"
"I knew.... but I really believe him, he is not Morgan or someone who lost his memories, he feels entirely different. He might actually be James." Sofia murmurs, her voice cracking.
"How can you prove you are James?" Jay asks.
"I come from the planet Proxima, I believed it to be Earth by humans living there."
"PROXIMA!! That is our mission, our planet Earth is facing a deadly pandemic that can't be saved, so we are trying to find that planet Proxima so we can survive." Harrison exclaims.
"Pandemic...." James mutters to himself before speaking out loud, "It isn't your crew, and not even this timeline's... there are many Proximas and many Earths and many versions of you. I always tried to find a way to revert back to someplace where she is alive."
"What do you mean?" Sofia asks, her tone pleading. James looks at her, his eyes widen. He looks at the same face but this one is too innocent, too pure and far from cunning. Someone who is filled with hope and love instead of hate. James grits his teeth, even if her face is the same, he can't bring himself to hate her.
"Sofia...." James pauses, looking down at Morgan's body again. "There are infinite worlds and timelines, still I feel so bounded. Bounded by something or someone. For now... can you explain to me the exact situation?"
Jay explains, "We came here by a device called Hyperfield Aperture, this is a different timeline, we assumed that we travelled back in time by some miracle, which is impossible. Morgan cleared it, he said it's a completely different Earth." Jay pauses, James looks out the observation window. Jay continues, "So, we are in a different timeline, the Hyperfield Aperture is nearby and we have enough power beaming but we are not sure without Morgan who is our commander."
"Ok, I'll help find Morgan...." James assures. But a thought hits his head, "Is this consciousness slipping? What is it? If I'm actually in Morgan's body. Then.... Morgan must be.... "
---
*Chapter 7: Peripetaia*
*Part 2:*
"The reality you and everyone think you are in is untrue. The reality we are in... is a..."
On Timeline A, Morgan with his crew are in space, meanwhile the Earth is about to face the same destruction as Timeline B's Earth.
Before Timeline B's Earth got destroyed, when Alex died. "I still don't understand that thing.... what did A...Alex say..." Reed stutters.
Finn sat on the edge, "There is a myth. A couple proposed an idea to the world. They lived almost 600 years ago on this Earth. Religious people denied him and his wife, and killed them to stop the influence on other people. Their names were Othran and Sorenna."
"But how can something like that happen... why is our reality..."
---
On Timeline A, James' consciousness is discovered in Morgan's body. The situation calmed down more than before, James agrees to help them but still there is disbelief in their hearts except Sofia's.
"We need to pass through the Hyperfield Aperture, and too quickly." James says.
"Sure but why quickly..." Jay questions.
"If we don't then we will all be consumed by this Earth soon."
Jay feels extremely uneasy, "I'll take some rest for now.... I didn't rest for I don't know how long."
"Sure," Harrison assures.
Sofia stays far away from James. But looking at Morgan's face, she wants him to comfort her. "James, when are we getting out of here?"
James turns around, "Very soon, in a few hours of Earth time."
Jay heads into the cockpit to have a quick check. His gaze falls on the letter again. He stares at the letter as he speaks to himself, "Sorry, I don't feel so good... my insomnia is getting worse each day."
Harrison sits beside Sofia, "Do you know... in this modern world, being delusional is the only way to stay happy."
"What do you mean?" Sofia asks.
"You think nobody else knows about you and Morgan? I see pain and regret in your eyes, a longing for change"
"Is it too obvious? I don't want anything personal of mine to affect the mission."
"Someone used to look at me the same way, she was my wife, she also had eyes that craved change, she was stuck in a wheelchair dreaming things... she understood life more than me. She used to say things even I didn't understand," Harrison sighs.
---
Years before the pandemic on Timeline B's Earth -
Harrison's wife laid on the bed as they kept talking. "Joy in walking?" Harrison mumbled.
"Yes love... I walked so... so long ago, I remember that day... each step. It felt like I was completely free... Right now.... I feel so bounded..." Her voice trembled.
"Don't worry, walking outside is not so fun. There is nothing outside... the world is a messed up place." Harrison lamented.
"I met you in this messed up place right?" She smiles. "It's not the world that's sad. It's what you choose to see.... the longer you keep your eyes open, the more you want to close them. I very rarely leave this apartment... I know almost nothing what outside looks like... but I dream what outside may look like. Kids playing, running around. Adults working, loving each other and everyone is smiling. People are happy. I keep on dreaming it, even if the world isn't like my dream. It makes me happy." She sobs but grins.
---
At present, "What do you think... will happen to us?" Sofia asks quietly.
"I really don't know, I don't want to trust this James... "
Both of them look at James who is checking the Habitat module. Harrison stood up and stepped near James.
"Mor.... James. What are your plans." Harrison speaks up.
James feels lost deep within his loud thoughts to even hear anyone. He mutters to himself, "That.... that Morgan will die.... he turned into me.... if he really did... he won't survive.... This is.... bad..."
"Hey!!!!" Harrison repeats.
James snaps, he turns around and pushes Harrison back. "I.... I'm sorry, just leave me alone for a while."
Harrison steps back near Sofia, "I don't trust this man, not even a little."
Sofia sighs, "No other option."
---
Jay toggles the magnetic containment for the ion thrusters. Sofia, Harrison, and James in Morgan's body lock themselves on the G couch again, so that extreme speed doesn't crush them.
"They are at 90%... Are you ready?" Jay says aloud.
"Yes." Every one of them says simultaneously.
At 3G, they feel the pressure again, they instantly lean back. The pressure is high but distributes on the G couch, giving them a comfortable ride.
6 hours later, they reach the midpoint. Jay stops the acceleration for a while. "Just a day.... and then we may.... W.... I really feel so damn dizzy... But it feels so familiar.... even though I only heard of things like this, I always.... believed these existed somewhere." James murmurs.
"How can... something like this happen? I heard Morgan once talking about the voices he hears. He mentioned your name. At some point I thought he is schizophrenic." Jay turns back to look at him.
"This Earth might be another timeline. The volcanic eruption is still happening. Means the change I wanted isn't happening. The loop... it still..."
Harrison interrupts, "What destruction are you talking about."
"Hyperfield Aperture creates a tear. The tear destroys the worlds."
Jay snaps, "WHAT!!! Destroys? You are kidding. Something like that can't happen." His eyes fill with tears. "Cassia..." He whispers. "I don't believe you at all, we don't even know who you are. How the hell are you supposed to know about Hyperfield..."
Harrison yells with him, "I knew from the beginning, this man is not at all Morgan. I can't really believe how something like this happened but whatever you are. I don't believe you even a little."
James stares down, "I thought destroying everything would stop the loop. I'm the one who caused the pandemic in your planet."
Shock spreads on their faces. Jay remains silent, "Is Morgan playing with us, but no way Morgan is like this or would do any kind of prank. This James knows about the pandemic." he thinks.
"And a fact." James remembers his theory of the fragment of the message given through Mathews that said thousand deaths. "I believe, if we don't break the loop, we will continue to die in a painful way. Everyone stuck in this loop will die, including me."
---
On Earth, "There is a photo we took decades ago with the Hubble Telescope, a human-like figure in space." Morgan responds.
"It's just impossible to see something like that. I thought they said there is some glitch. Our brain makes it look like this." Harrison says.
"You really believe that? That UFO sighting a few days ago, and now the world is almost ending. We always ignored things like that and that is why today is our end. You damn fool." Morgan slams his hand on the desk.
A day passes, the magnitude of earthquakes increases significantly. Every volcano erupts and land starts to break apart. They have had the spacecraft prepared.
"Terminal Countdown Demonstration test is my plan. It is the only plan that will let us escape." Sofia proposes.
Everyone looks at her. "What do you mean?"
"This spacecraft is funded by all the richest people of our world. I heard a few of them talking to the administrator. Means this emergency spacecraft is far too efficient and much more advanced than any other spacecraft." Sofia explains.
"That is a spacecraft, it's heavily guarded. It's not a car we can steal." Morgan states.
Sofia continues, "We are astronauts. That woman you talked about, she is one of the CAPCOMs. We are well-experienced astronauts. Those billionaires are not. So we will give a 'dry run' and till the moment they realise, we will have our spacecraft at maximum thrust."
The lady installs a localized virus to the Launch Control Centre. Sofia talks to the administrator, pretending how much she values this mission and asking for an overly fair price to do the dry run with her crew. The administrator trusts her and they agree on the dry run. Everyone takes their positions for the test. Wearing their suits, they go inside to check the habitat module and the cockpit first.
The uploaded virus works, showing false information to everyone. In the spacecraft, the crew uses prerecorded audio to fool them. The details show the fuels are all stable and the engines are cold, but Jay prepares for the ignition. Morgan triggers the pre-valves early.
The thrust is maximum and they begin to lift up from the ground. Huge fuel pipes tear apart. The sound of launch is not dampened by the water, hence extremely loud and destroys the nearby place. The loud sound shakes the spacecraft, making the crew unable to stand.
After 45 seconds, a 3G force hits them but they are locked on their G couch, helping them survive through the pressure.
---
In space, "What...!" Jay trembles, "Earth.... destr...."
"Calm down Jay. He is messing with us." Harrison tries to comfort Jay.
"No, he isn't lying. Everything that is happening with us. And even this.... I can't ignore any words like that." Sofia says.
"Victor.... Cassia...." Jay slowly shuts his eyes, feeling lost. "I can't open my eyes anymore..."
"Jay? What happened?" Harrison asks.
Jay doesn't answer for a while, there is no movement.
"Are you asleep?" Sofia asks.
"N...no... I can't fall asleep, I have insomnia... a rare one.... "
"Very soon... we will cross that thing. I really hope.... it doesn't repeat.... I don't want to be a part of an endless cycle of pain and deaths. I'll end it all." James murmurs.
They all calm down, it isn't long before they find something on the radar. They discover a spaceship that left this Earth. It moves rapidly and was following them.
---
Harrison captures a picture. James takes a closer look at it, "This... I saw this spacecraft before."
In Timeline A, Earth is close to annihilation. In space, James in Morgan's body and his crew are getting closer to L4, so they slow down. But from Earth, Morgan's crew escapes with the spacecraft by deceiving the whole world. As they reach the nearest orbit, they see another spaceship far away reaching L4. Morgan's crew from this timeline decides to take a picture.
"This spaceship is the UFO we saw days ago." Morgan says. Everyone takes a closer look at that spaceship.
In James's ship, "What? Where did you see it?" Sofia asks.
"In my home planet Proxima. This same spacecraft was in an abandoned country. I'm sure of it. Which means.... that spacecraft has another version of Morgan's crew." James explains.
Harrison snaps, "What the fuck is going on? I can't understand and believe any of this."
James clears his throat, he explains what happened in his world with Finn and what led him to this.
Sofia's hands cover her mouth in shock. She can't believe such an evil and cunning version of herself killed Morgan. She starts to look at James differently. James is the person reconstructed from Morgan. Which means James is Morgan technically but an entirely different person with different memories and emotions. She is shocked due to the fact that she tried to kill James. Even if that's not her, all of this makes her feel guilty.
Harrison stares down, he can't believe that their different versions hate each other.
"What do you think is happening now."
"A bootstrap paradox. It's like a circle. It doesn't have any origin or any end. The pandemic is caused by me. But this same pandemic caused Morgan of this timeline to escape from there. And I don't know how but he will reach Proxima. Then everything will loop back to me and I'll cause the pandemic thinking I'm trying to bring a change. That will not be me... that is the question.... what happens to us now...." James looks outside as if he accepted defeat.
In Morgan's ship that recently escaped Earth, "Why is he with us?" Harrison asks while he points at Finn who is tied up and thrown into a corner.
"I fooled the administrator but he told Finn to suit up and stay with us in any case of medical emergency. I didn't deny. So I took him with us. We escaped. So, let's celebrate." Sofia grins.
"No... not yet. That UFO, they are far away but we should catch up very quickly." Morgan insists.
Jay takes a closer look at the data. "They are heading to L4, to something.... radar can't detect it... the photo I clicked looks distorted just at that point."
Morgan suggests, "That must be alien technology. They came from there and are trying to go back. We can go right at the moment they go. Then we may find another lively planet to stay in."
"But if they are such advanced aliens, they may have advanced self-defense. How do we tackle that?" Harrison asks.
"We will take a gamble. Even though, if we stay here, we will die anyway." Morgan answers.
Hours later, the surface of the Earth in Timeline A breaks apart. The crack is so huge that it can be noticed from space. Morgan's crew are about to catch up with James's ship.
"They may use any point defense system like ours and attack. The way they are heading towards us, they clearly either intend to destroy us and try passing through the closed tunnel that Hyperfield Aperture created. Or they want to pass us and go first." James says.
Harrison sighs, "You can't be serious, they don't know about Hyperfield I'm sure."
James explains, "That ship is run by different versions of us, not me precisely but Morgan's and all of you with another person named Finn. I think they are smart enough to know that they should not rush into some distorted space. That closed distorted space needs power beaming to open again. I don't think they will realise this, but still they can just follow us. If they just follow us and stay right behind us, then they will enter the junction too. And my intuition says, they will definitely do that."
"Yeah, I believe it all now." Harrison mutters.
Hours later, Morgan's ship was getting closer to James's ship.
In Morgan's ship,
"We shouldn't follow them, what if only they can pass through and we may crash?" Sofia yells.
Morgan replies, "There is no other choice. I feel like that is a portal that they may pass through, and that portal might not be open yet. They didn't attack us or speed up. L4 is full of asteroids too, I can't think of any other way."
Jay stays in the cockpit, Harrison says to Morgan, "Fine, let's see, I think they may try something, let's stay close to them, so if they try to attack, they know the blast can destroy their ship too."
Sofia checks through the observation window again.
After a while she says, "I think they are saving power, they are not attacking and they are going slow. My guess is, they need power to pass through. We don't have that."
Morgan goes inside the cockpit.
In James's ship, "We are getting close, we should keep our trajectory changing so we don't need to use power beam here. Jay is unconscious, so I and Harrison have to handle it all." Sofia says, her eyes determined.
Harrison moves the unconscious body of Jay and locks him on his bed. He takes control of the spacecraft.
Sofia and James enter the cockpit and lock themselves on the G couch.
"Ok, we are ready for power beaming, and then we can escape." Harrison asks, "But James, what about that Morgan's ship?"
"Let them follow, let them enter the junction, maybe this can change something, maybe this way we both can enter, and reach another timeline, where they are meant to reach in Proxima. We will destroy them there, and it will actually change the whole reality."
"Why do you despise the loop thing?" Sofia asks.
"This... loop is not just life and death, I can't clearly understand it, but I know that it's a loop of constant fixed failure no matter how hard all of us try to survive. This is a fixed fate of failure and pain. Life starts and death ends. But here, being born is not the origin, and death is not the end. There is a strange pain I feel when I know that for eternity I will keep losing Eve, I will keep fighting and there is no end. So I want to try and change it. I can't just die, people are dying now but they will be in pain for eternity if things stay the same. It hurts because I feel like I'm aware of whatever is going on, means I'll be aware for eternity and carry this pain. I wonder if someone else is aware of it and suffering."
Sofia leans back. Harrison checks the parameters, "Anyways, systems clear, we can begin power beaming."
A beam of laser locks onto the distorted space. In Morgan's ship, "What... what is that?" Morgan questions.
"Alright, let's follow them!!!" Jay yells.
Morgan's ship gets too close to James's ship. Jay in Morgan's ship slows down to match its speed. Harrison in James's ship moves straight forward, increasing the speed. The distorted space slowly starts to tear.
Morgan quickly realises that and asks Jay to thrust quickly into the tear. James realises what that other ship is planning but it's too late. Morgan with his ship quickly overtakes James's ship, flying above them. The tear almost opens, Morgan's ship passes first and then James's ship almost simultaneously.
Morgan and his crew are utterly shocked by what they see, the junction looks like a completely distorted space, their voices echo and the spaceship vibrates.
Harrison couldn't control James's ship, it turns on its own and disappears.
In Morgan's ship, they can't control their ship and they escape through the distortion somehow. They get pushed out at a super high speed through the tear. The pressure almost crushes them. Jay tries his hardest and successfully activates active propulsion.
In James's ship, everyone tries to float towards the observation window. Sofia's eyes widen as she looks outside. No matter where their vision goes, it's complete darkness, no stars or any other space phenomena. A complete void.
The spacecraft keeps traveling forward in complete darkness. James floats towards the cockpit, he checks the camera, upon sight he pushes himself back in shock, "This.... is this... the end?"
Slowly, the parts of the spacecraft break apart like ashes.