Chapter 1 — Prologue I: Pilot

“Who are you?” Ellery inquired in a mix of frustration and confusion as he stared at the hole in his establishment. “And why did you just crash through my roof?” “Hey, you’re Rowan Ellery!” Weaver exclaimed with honour. “You’re the owner of the Ellery Diner! I eat there all the time.” “Great, but that doesn’t answer my question. Who are you?” “I’m the Weaver.” “What are you? Some kinda superhero?” “Well, yeah. It’s a funny story, actually. It all started… a year ago, I guess.”

Today was an ordinary day. Richard Cox woke up to the same sounds every day: peaceful chirps of birds, wind whistling through the trees, and car horns blaring.

“That’s peaceful to you?” Ellery commented. “Hey! Whose story is this?” Weaver retorted.

Rays of sunlight peeked through the curtains as he stretched and yawned. “Today’s gonna be a great day,” Richard said in soliloquy and rejoiced at the start of a new day. Breakfast was sweeter, the sun was brighter, and the day was better every day. He suited up and unleashed himself on Helix City. The smell of fresh air never got old for Richard. Neither did her voice. “Good morning, Richard!” Eliza greeted ecstatically. “Good morning to you, too, Eliza,” he replied. He couldn’t explain it, but it was that one moment in the day that gave him all the motivation he needed. His neighbour was the best part of his day.

“So, how does your little crush explain why you crashed into my building?” Ellery asked. “I’m getting there.”

Richard loved his job. He was the head developer at his favourite gaming studio. He was obsessed with video games. They gave him the power to escape the horrors of his life, to create his own reality—a world in his image. There was one problem with this job, though. Actually, there were three: “Well, if it isn’t head developer Cox,” Adrian Keller remarked mockingly. Marina Soto and Leonard Briggs mirrored his disdain. “You must have fun, Cox. Being in charge of everyone must be a blast.” “Oh, very mature,” Richard commented in frustration. “Just get back to work and leave me alone.” “And what are you gonna do?” Adrian threatened, raising his voice. “You don’t have the stomach to do anything. Just like how you don’t have the stomach for this job. I’m just waiting for the day the boss makes the right choice and gives your position to me.”

“Why don’t you just report them to HR?” Ellery questioned. “I didn’t have the courage to,” Weaver replied. “I didn’t want to cause more problems than I needed to.” “So, you just suffer?” Richard nodded.

Richard just ignored the disruption. He always did. He didn’t want them to ruin his day, or anyone’s. They didn’t matter. Today was gonna be a great day. Richard walked out of the office building on cloud nine, but the atmosphere didn’t feel the same. The sky darkened as the clouds covered the already setting sun. The moonlight began to emerge from the horizon, greeted by an ominous howl from the wind. Fog annexed the distant terrain as Richard returned home. The precipitation commenced. Richard had to force himself through the wall of wind pushing against him. Such weather couldn’t stop his drive. Richard powered through and made it into the confines of his home. The muffled sounds of the tempest outside would dampen anyone else’s mood; not Richard’s. Richard was at peace.

Creak. Richard heard a creaking door upstairs, as if someone was trying to avoid being heard, but they were. The floorboards creaked as something approached. Richard was tense because of the unknown danger. The creaking turned into loud footsteps rushing towards him. A swarm of men descended the stairs. They wore all-black body armour, had green visors, and wielded batons and escrima sticks. They clutched Richard. He attempted to fight back but was outmatched and tased.

Richard woke up in some facility underground. He was sitting at a desk, bound to the chair by some energy rope. He was a bit roughed up from the abduction, and his vision was a bit hazy, but that was the least of his problems. Where was he? Richard saw a silhouette approaching him, accompanied by unnerving slow clapping. “Well… well… well… Richard Cox… God, your parents are evil,” the figure went on. “You’ve got to be kidding.” Richard was already done with this. “Anyway… you’re a lot more important than you realise… We need you…” “Can you please stop with the dramatic pauses and just cut to the chase? Why am I here? And who even are you?” “You’d be surprised…” The figure stepped out of the shadows to reveal herself: Clara Vance. “Of course. The ex-CEO of the company I work for is evil. Big cliché. What do you want with me?” “You know your way around computers – the best I’ve ever seen. I’m making a machine, and I need you to program and maintain it.” “What does the machine do?” “Taps into the multiverse.” “Wow, you really are hitting every movie cliché. You German or Russian?” “Just get to work.”

“So, you just sat there and started working?” Ellery asked. “Yeah,” Weaver responded. “Why didn’t you fight back or anything?” “Because I didn’t want to cause any more problems.” “Of course. I’m starting to see a trend with you.”

Richard whizzed away, focusing on the task at hand. Coding was his passion, but he loved science fiction more. He didn’t care if it was with malicious intent. That wasn’t what mattered. What mattered to him was that he was going to be one of the first human beings to come in contact with other universes. He wondered what other realities would be like, the infinite possibilities that could be in store for existence.

Days of slaving away in this cave, and the machine was ready. “Your machine is ready. All you have to do is press this button, and the dark matter particles will be injected into the particle accelerator while a vibrational frequency is emitted into it. When the particles collide, a wormhole—a breach—should open into the universe with the corresponding vibrational frequency,” Richard explained excitedly. “I didn’t ask for the science. I just want to know that it works.” Vance dismissed Richard’s enthusiasm. “I do warn you that the machine is just a prototype and therefore unstable, so I would advise waiting until we can run more tests and make a completed model.” “What better test is there than practical application?” Vance arrogantly pressed the button. The building began to rumble as the machine came to life. The desks and chairs began to levitate as the dark matter particles oscillated around the accelerator. “SHUT IT OFF!” Richard bellowed in warning. “No! Keep going!” Vance demanded. The particles collided. The machine exploded and was engulfed by the wormhole it formed. Everything in the room was being pulled in. Vance began evacuating her employees, but left Richard behind. Richard held on for dear life, but it wasn’t enough. He was pulled in.

Richard woke up in a suburban area. He wasn’t familiar with any of his surroundings. He was in a new universe. How was he going to get home? He decided to find the nearest help he could. That led him to a random house. He went into the backyard, where he saw two boys under a tree, enjoying their summer.