In The Beginning...

In The Beginning…

Alex Lawson peered through the thick glass window that separated the control room from the construction bay. He didn’t see the gleaming sphere that stood there, floodlights highlighting the shape and form of his invention. He saw the results of a million eloquent equations, the beauty of mathematics that had previously not existed, the final answer to “what if…”

“Alex?” a soft voice said.

He continued to stare, not wanting to leave the moment. He sighed and turned. Dr. Rebekkah Smithe - with a long "i" - stood next to him. Alex paused to smile at her one affectation. She was to be his sole companion on the journey. She had translated his math into the glowing metal sculpture that sat only a short distance away: the power plant which would keep them alive.

“Yes?”

“It’s time.”

Alex let out a small laugh. “Time? Time is no longer a consideration. We have all the time in the world… in the universe, for that matter.”

“So you say. Shouldn’t we prove it?”

Alex smiled. “You’re right. It’s time.”

There was no sense of movement in the dark silence. A barely discernable glow emanated from the instrument array as all the power that the antimatter generator could deliver was used in forming the protective cocoon that kept them alive.

"Are we there yet?" Rebekkah's voice drifted through the darkness.

"According to my calculations, we'll be there in ..." Alex paused. In the blackness, he couldn't see the chronograph. "... soon," he finished lamely.

His theories on time and space had led to this moment. He had found a way to use the energy of tachyons to not just move almost instantaneously through any distance but to short circuit time itself. It was possible to go anywhere and anywhen ... and Alex had proved it.

This journey was to be his crowning achievement – to prove how the universe was formed – to witness the precise moment when everything began. The preparations were carefully made. This would be the longest jump ever attempted, back to the beginning of time itself. The jump craft would have to withstand incredible stresses. He had done the calculations himself hundreds of time. He was now minutes away from witnessing the birth of the universe.

In the quiet of the journey, he had plenty of time to think. Obsessively, he went over every detail until he was satisfied that he had accounted for every contingency. Now, as he waited drifting in the quiet, a random thought had come into his head born of his natural curiosity ... and it had taken over his mind. Harlan Ellison, an early twentieth century science fiction writer once said "The two most common elements in the universe are Hydrogen and stupidity." I stand here and proclaim him the world's greatest prophet! he thought.

"You're awfully silent," Rebekkah's voice sounded again.

"Rebekkah, have you ever heard of 'Murphy'?"

"Was he a famous scientist?"

"No – more like a philosopher. He once said that nature always sides with the hidden flaw."

"I don't understand."

"Sometimes, you can be 99.9999% right but some minor detail can make you fail. In this case, I overlooked what was right in front of my nose."

"Alex – you're scaring me."

"Rebekkah – what existed before the moment the universe was formed?" Alex could sense her brow furrow like it always did when she was deep in thought.

"Nothing, I guess."

"But we're here – and we exist, don't we?"

Alex's last thought, as he, Rebekkah, and everything that existed – but shouldn't - disintegrated into primeval atoms, was we're here, Rebekkah – and we always will be ...

And, the universe was born.

An entry for the SciFi (March) round of "The Bard's Hall Contest" 
Prompt: Prompt #1: "Got to find a way back from a Past or Future time."
Word Limit: 2000
Word Count: 642