I continued to frantically press the touch panel, trying by any means to stop the laboratory experiment, which seemed to have gotten out of control. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest and beads of sweat running down my forehead. But things were not going as I had planned. Contrary to my expectations, the machine continued to operate at full capacity.
Just ten minutes ago, I, along with the rest of our research team, couldn't hide my joy at the fact that after decades of scientific research, complex calculations and incredible effort, we were finally close to achieving our dream. We were one step away from the greatest discovery of all time.
I combined the theory of quantum tunnelling — based on quantum mechanics and describing the ability of particles to "seep" through energy barriers that are insurmountable according to the classical laws of physics — with the theory of multidimensional spaces. The latter posited the existence of additional dimensions that allow for the creation of "shortcuts" through the complex structure of reality. Combining all these scientific ideas, hypotheses and experimental data, I found myself on the verge of triumph. Today, high-ranking government officials arrived here: military officials, scientists from various academic institutions, government representatives. They were waiting for the culmination — the final experiment designed to prove that all the multi-billion dollar investments had not been in vain. For my country, and indeed for the whole world, this day could be a decisive turning point in history, promising incredible, hitherto unimaginable prospects.
The possibilities that would change the course of human development forever had inspired me from the very beginning of my research. I couldn't help but see how the discovery of portals based on quantum teleportation and the theory of multidimensional spaces could give humanity access to unique resources and new horizons:
Space exploration. If a portal became stable, we could instantly travel to other planets and even galaxies, avoiding long flights and the complexity of space missions. The colonization of distant corners of the solar system would proceed at a rapid pace, and mining for minerals on asteroids and the Moon would no longer be science fiction. Moreover, the deployment of space observatories in the most remote corners of the universe would be simplified: no cumbersome transportation, all processes would be instantaneous.
Energy. The opening of portals would mean access to new sources of energy, including the much-desired helium
3 from the Moon, which could provide humanity with virtually inexhaustible reserves for centuries. Energy transfer through portals would allow it to be collected from solar panels located in space and delivered directly to Earth without any loss during transport. This could radically change the structure of the global energy industry.
Logistics and transport. Instant delivery of goods, no more planes, trains or ships — all this would become a reality. Huge traffic jams and multi-kilometre highways would be a thing of the past. Transportation time and costs would be reduced to a minimum. And the environmental situation would improve dramatically: a sharp reduction in CO₂ emissions
would be a powerful boost to climate recovery. Rescue operations and evacuations from disaster areas would become incredibly efficient.
Medicine. Teleporting patients to the best clinics in the world in a fraction of a second would save countless lives. Researching diseases in conditions that are inaccessible on Earth would give doctors enormous advantages. Instant delivery of medicines and equipment, even to the most remote corners of the planet, would erase many borders, making healthcare truly global.
Ecology. The ability to dispose of waste by sending it through a portal to safe recycling areas or lifeless planets would effectively solve the problem of landfill overcrowding. Restoring damaged ecosystems through the instantaneous transport of water, animals and plants would reduce the time needed to rehabilitate nature. The exploration of new, possibly even extraterrestrial ecosystems would lift the veil on the mysteries of life in the universe.
Economy and society. Cities of the future could be organised completely differently, abandoning traditional roads and cumbersome transport infrastructure. People would move easily across the planet, working in one place and living in another — without forced relocations or visa restrictions. Global cooperation between scientists and engineers, remote yet "personal," would give a tremendous boost to human development. Technological innovations would arise not in isolated "poles" but everywhere.
Military technology. The strategic advantages of suddenly moving troops, equipment, and resources through portals would be enormous. But at the same time, security threats would arise: if a portal can be opened suddenly anywhere in space, it can easily be used for espionage or to launch an attack. Defending Earth from asteroids, alien threats, and other cosmic disasters would become more realistic thanks to the ability to quickly create defensive bases or move strike weapons.
Fundamental science. Portals would open the way to parallel worlds, provided, of course, that our device is capable of connecting not only different points in space, but also alternative realities. This would provide an opportunity to test the most incredible hypotheses about the nature of time, space and matter. Contact with other civilisations — even hypothetical ones — could finally become a reality.
For so many years, I dreamed of leaving my mark on history, of doing something so significant that my name would never be forgotten. And now, when my dream was literally within reach, something terrible happened: the portal we had opened suddenly lost stability and began to expand rapidly. The radius of destruction grew alarmingly fast, engulfing everything in its path. Cities, infrastructure, natural landmarks — everything could disappear in the rift. What's more, if nothing was done, this rift could well engulf the entire Earth, and perhaps even the entire universe.
In desperation, I pressed every possible button and combination, trying at all costs to stop the catastrophe, but to no avail. In the observation room, people finally panicked: they jumped up from their seats and rushed to the protective glass to try to understand what was happening behind the transparent partition. A heavy, vibrating hum filled the entire space, so that even modern soundproofing could not save us from the soul-shaking roar.
Suddenly, the communication light flashed. I pressed the call button, and the excited face of the general who supervised my laboratory appeared on the screen.
"Andrei, what the hell is going on there?" he roared into the microphone, trying to shout over the rumbling. "Why is the portal expanding? Where is this infernal noise coming from? The furniture has started to vibrate, and all the small objects are stuck to the glass opposite the portal!"
I swallowed the lump in my throat, trying to keep my voice from shaking: "Comrade General, I'm doing everything I can. The experiment didn't go as planned. I don't understand where we went wrong. All previous launches went smoothly, you saw the video recordings yourself. But now there is a strong expansion of space that we did not anticipate.
"What does this mean for us?" asked the general, although his face already betrayed his extreme concern. His cheeks were flushed and his lips were tightly pressed together. He understood perfectly well how serious the situation was.
"I don't know for sure," I replied, feeling panic rising within me. "We haven't fully studied these effects. The worst-case scenario is possible. Theoretically, the portal could engulf not only Earth, but all of the surrounding space. In the worst case, we risk destroying the entire universe!
The general turned pale, looking at me with a look of horror and confusion. He seemed to freeze instantly. But after a few seconds, he clenched his fists, raised his chin sharply and said:
"What the hell? I order you to cut the power! Turn off everything!
"I've already cut the power," I quickly interjected. "The power supply has been cut, but the portal continues to expand, and its power is only growing. This is some kind of... phenomenon that we didn't even suspect. Evacuate everyone immediately, General! We have to save the people!
"Are you sure about that, Andrei?" The general's voice trembled noticeably, although he tried his best to maintain his military composure.
"Absolutely. Here in the laboratory, there is almost nothing I can do to help. But I have one plan: I'll try to disable the safety device on the installation by damaging the main circuit. This will probably destroy the portal, but it will cause an explosion. I don't know how powerful the explosion will be, so please evacuate as far away as possible. You have a maximum of ten minutes, no more.
Hearing my words, the general wasted no time, turning to someone off-camera and giving clear orders, drowning out the sirens. Amidst the loud wailing of the alarms, he turned back to me:
"Do what you have to do. I'll organise the evacuation. Listen to me: all your work has already been copied to our central servers, don't worry about it. And your guys — I'll do everything I can to get them out. They know as much as you do, they'll figure it out when everything calms down.
I sighed heavily: "Thank you, Victor Romanovich. Save them. They're young and incredibly talented. I've lived a long life, damn it, I've seen a lot.
"Are you sure you don't want someone to help you?" The general frowned, realising he was sending me to almost certain death.
"No, I don't. Who knows this setup better than me? It would take too long to explain the details to someone else, and they might mess everything up. So I'll have to do it myself. Don't worry about me, there's no time. All right, I'm off.
"Take care, Andrei," he shouted, and the connection was cut off.I ran out of the control centre and rushed to the stairs, because the lifts had been cut off as a matter of urgency. My legs were buckling, I was breathing heavily — after all, I was already seventy, and running up stairs, especially in a stressful situation, was not so easy. As I ran, memories of my life flooded back: how I got married when I was young, how my wife and I raised two wonderful daughters who gave me six grandchildren. Looking back, I realised that I had no regrets. The only thing that tormented me was that I had not been able to finish my life's work. But then I remembered my students and colleagues, who would surely continue my work. They would figure everything out and never forget their teacher.
When I finally reached the room with the installation, I could barely catch my breath: the air here was noticeably depleted, as if the portal itself was sucking in oxygen. It became difficult to breathe, and my head began to spin. The hum was unbearable, and I realized that time was running out — everything was about to spiral out of control.
Running up to the massive pillars supporting the portal's force field, I began to quickly unbalance them, disabling the energy circuit. As soon as I turned one of the pillars, the field dissipated almost instantly, and the oval of the portal froze, then began to shrink rapidly. But this was not the end of the process — the disappearing portal greedily sucked in everything around it, like a black hole. I was sucked in too. I felt myself being torn from the floor and mercilessly thrown right into the centre of the rupture.
"It looks like it's over, Andryusha," flashed through my mind. "Your journey ends here. Although... I will be the first person to pass through a real portal.
The moment I was swallowed by the abyss, I felt something very similar to diving into water: a strange, elastic medium closed in around me, and then darkness fell.
However, my consciousness kicked in instantly — I stopped feeling my body and simply "saw" my surroundings in a new and incomprehensible way. Everything around me looked like a chaotic tangle of countless coloured strings — an endless kaleidoscope of shapes and shades, many of which were impossible to describe in familiar terms. Thoughts flowed at breakneck speed, and I felt as if billions of ideas and images were swirling around in my head like a giant whirlpool. Time lost all meaning, and I couldn't tell how many seconds or hours had passed.
But suddenly, in this eerie space, I felt a powerful suction pull again. It was the only physical sensation that returned to me during my entire stay in this unknown realm. It seemed that something large, not alive, was being sucked in with me, but at its very centre, life seemed to be lurking. Everything around me remained strange and unknowable. And again — a sharp darkness, like a blackout.
The next thing I felt was noise and pleasant warmth. I was deafened by a rumbling and banging, like explosions. I heard someone's calm yet strange voice speaking in a language I did not understand at all. It felt as if I was being physically restrained, unable to move: my body seemed to be trapped in some kind of enclosed space, but at the same time I could feel my limbs and move them.
Suddenly, there was a loud bang, and everything around me began to spin wildly. I felt that we, or more likely me along with something else, were thrown up or sideways, just like on a roller coaster. Then there was a short but deafening silence. I don't know how long it was before I heard the creaking of metal, as if a heavy lid was being opened.
Amidst the creaking, I heard a surprised and excited male voice: "Esme, come here quickly. Look what I found!"
Judging by the vague outlines, there was a man with dark hair standing in front of me, but I couldn't determine his height; everything seemed blurry. A moment later, a woman appeared next to him:
"What is it, Jonathan?" she asked, leaning closer and looking at me with undisguised amazement. "Is that a child?"
"Yes, dear, it's a child," the man said, confused, his voice betraying his incomprehension of the situation. Perhaps he was as shocked as I was.
"Pull yourself together!" the woman said with some determination, and I felt her touch as she gently picked me up. "We're taking him with us, right now."
And then I was overcome by a wild terror mixed with the realisation of a completely absurd fact: I was a tiny baby. My limbs seemed tiny, my body weak, and everything around me seemed much bigger than usual. Questions raced through my head: "How did I get here? Where am I? What happened to me?" All these thoughts overwhelmed me at once and completely drained me of strength — I felt my consciousness slipping away due to the intense stress and overwhelming sensations.
***
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