"Iris"

This post is part of a series: Part I, “Kashmir,” Part II, “Iris,” Part III, “Tesselate,” and Part IV, “Lost Cause, “ Part V, “Undisclosed Desires,” and Part VI, “There’s Never Enough Time.”

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Pierre (from “Kashmir”) has been exploring this inverse world he’s been transported to. It’s been a long time (years on the Original Earth) and while he looks worn down, he’s still the same age physically.  

Pierre: All I can figure out is that this place is abandoned. Haven’t seen a soul since I arrived. There was life on this universe. Something happened, but I can’t tell what. That will be my next adventure. Now that it’s pretty much confirmed that there’s no one else and no one is coming for me.

It’s true what they say, “you can’t fight the tears that ain’t coming.” Don’t want to have a pity party. Gotta keep surviving. The question remains…how long can I survive here?

The phone mechanism I’m trying to build based on notes I barely remember from my thesis doesn’t seem to be getting anywhere. Ugh if only there was a way to test this with someone else. It could take 2000 years. I’m not surviving 2000 years.

The mechanism Pierre has been working on starts to shake and makes a shrill sound.

Is this “the moment of truth?” This can’t be. Who would even have the ability to connect with this gadget?

Pierre presses some buttons on the machine and a hologram appears. The Holographic Woman is standing with her back to him.

Excuse me? Ma’am? Can you hear me? I can only see your back? Parlez-vous anglais?

The hologram woman turns around. Surprised that she can hear someone calling at her.

Hologram Woman: I can hear you. I can’t see you. Yes, I speak English, French, Dutch, Swahili, Mandarin, and an alien language too advanced for you.

Pierre: I didn’t mean to build in a holographic mechanism into my device. ”Everything feels like the movies” this way. Like Princess Leia. How did you reach me?

Hologram Woman: You did not build the holographic component into your device. We have that technology.

Pierre: How is this possible? Are you a human or alien? What planet do you live on? Am I even alive right now?

Pierre finds something sharp and pricks his finger. A little blood droplet forms.

Hologram Woman: You don’t have to “bleed just to know you’re alive.” Your planet Earth was always so behind and simple.

Pierre: What do you mean?

Hologram Woman: I’m from a planet Earth too. My planet earth is centuries ahead in terms of technology, but that’s also because we had a huge bump from some aliens as your planet puts it. The version of Earth you’re on now, you got there through your research on inversing. You could have ended up on a million planet Earth variations. More of them have actual people on them and they’re all at different technological periods themselves. You’re from what we consider the ground zero planet also known as our control.

Pierre: This is a lot of take in. So what happened to this planet Earth I’m sitting on? Why am I not aging? “I don’t want the world to see me” come back, I mean to my original Earth, and think that something weird happened to me.

Hologram Woman: A lot of weird things ARE happening to you. You have a lot of questions. I wanted to contact you because we found your frequency and I can help you get back to your planet as you know it. You won’t age on other planet Earths because you are tied to the one you are born on. We haven’t figured that out.

Pierre: Wow. “I don’t think that they’d understand” any of this back home. I’m barely keeping up.

Hologram Woman: You’re actually lucky that’s how it works. The planet you are on now was decimated by nuclear war and the air just started to get clean.

Pierre: Oh wow. Well hopefully the radiation doesn’t stick when I finally do get back to my Earth. Will time have moved and how much by the time we’re ready to send me back?

Hologram Woman: It will likely be a 1000 years ahead of when you left. You won’t know anyone and you’ll be going back as you are right this moment. You may be seen as a phony, a looney, or worse. It’s up to you whether you want to go back or not, but you’ll never be able to die on the planet you’re on now.

(pauses) Listen, “everything’s meant to be broken” where you are now. So you’ll have to clean up and start anew. There are scraps and half built machines in some of the cities. Myself and my colleagues will be here with you every step of the way.

Pierre: How do I know I can trust you?

Hologram Woman: My team and I are the only ones who will find you for the next 350 years. It’s up to you how you want to spend that time. We’ll get to know one another too. “I just want you to know who I am” as well.

Pierre: Okay. What’s first?

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