August 2017
Hadrian chuckled, a dry sound that mingled with the laughter of Governor Dave's daughter. "My dad was right," he said. "I was never bullied again. Not because Chris turned a new leaf, and not even because I became stronger, which I did. But because I just don't have time to play in the park anymore. Hahaha!"
He leaned back, his mind drifting, reminiscing about the gift that he received.
For the past six years, my life had a rigid schedule: six hours in school, two hours of revision, one hour for additional language studies, and four hours of physical training. That training was a combination of swimming, gym workouts, and mixed martial arts. Weekends were dedicated to outdoor training courses. Daily, I had two hours to do whatever I wanted, which I mostly spent playing video games. Sometimes, Mom and I would take a break from the routine and go on a trip somewhere, or catch a movie. Other times, I'd go hunting, fishing, and camping with Dad when he came back home.
In the last two years, he'd been home more often. I liked it when Dad was back; it was fun and serious in a way. But it made me happier seeing Mom so genuinely happy. Yet, I also felt restricted, being under 24/7 surveillance. I started to notice them after a camping trip in 2014. Dad taught me how to hunt, how to track a deer unnoticed. He called these "technicians " he learned from Grandpa. Dad always said Grandpa was the best hunter he knew, that he could be in the top ten in the world. And he'd learned many other things from Grandpa too. Sadly, I barely remember Grandpa; he died of a heart attack in 2005, when I was only six.
On that trip, I also learned how to tell if you were being hunted. Sometimes, I wish I'd never learned how many people were watching my every move, every day, every minute. Even when I slept, someone was looking at me. I now knew who they were and that they were still doing it to keep mom and me safe. Still That's "creepy"
I also had firearms and some cold weapons training . But sometimes I thought Dad was paranoid. I didn't think I would ever need to use these weapons. Being ready for self-defense is different from being war-ready. I feel Mom probably felt the same way, but she happily indulged Dad's flights of fancy as long as I didn't get seriously hurt.
But I felt Dad was right about some things. I remembered his saying, "It's better to be a warrior in a garden than to be a gardener in a war"
He once said, "Child, knowledge is not power; power is power."
Some things I understood, many I still didn't. But one thing I did understand thoroughly: that weakness is a sin. It's not a crime; it's worse—it's a sin you commit against yourself and your loved ones.
Happiness is achieved by one's hard work, not living on the mercy of other or on the mercy of Fate.
Hadrian paused his thoughts, listening to the song playing. It was good, one of his favorites.
"Sofia! Hadrian! Come on! I'm giving the Governor a tour of the facility!" Mom called out.
---
After twenty minutes of theoretical equations, long and weird equipment names, Sofia asked, "With your research, can you make a time machine?"
"Haha, no, sweetie," Mom replied with a gentle smile. "That's not what we're working on. Let me explain it in simpler words, what we do is this."
Even the Governor perked up his ears.
"We study **inter-dimensional correlations**. For centuries, it was believed our reality was confined to just three spatial dimensions. But our work, building on advanced String Theory and Quantum Gravity, has now yielded empirical proof of **eleven dimensions**. This isn't just abstract mathematics; it's evidence of **multiple universes**, layered beyond our immediate perception."
Rena paused, letting the implications sink in. "Traditional cosmology often suggested that to traverse these universes, one would need to 'end' one existence to 'begin' another, often in a linear, sequential fashion. And yes, some of these parallel universes are indeed light-years beyond our reach, vastly different from our own. But our research proves that's only half the truth."
She gestured with her hands, trying to paint a picture. "It's more akin to **frequency tuning**. Imagine countless realities unfolding simultaneously, all around us. That rose bush outside? In another frequency, it might already be withered, or perhaps a different species of flower entirely. We only perceive *this* specific reality because our consciousness, our very biology, is 'tuned' to its particular frequency. But our research has proven that there are myriad events, myriad realities, co-existing that a standard human mind simply isn't equipped to perceive or interact with."
Governor Dave looked perplexed. "How is this possible?
Rena smiled. "Think of yourself as a radio. You can only pick up one wavelength and play that song. That doesn't mean there aren't countless other waves carrying different broadcasts, all passing through this very room right now. We're just not tuned to them."
"The **Multidimensional Frequency Sender and Receiver** is a machine we've made to research these 'multiple universes'," Rena explained, gesturing to an elaborate device humming quietly. "We've also developed a **neuro-frequency helmet** by which you can send concentrated brainwave signals. As there are no known 'receivers' currently attuned to these deep-multiverse frequencies, these signals simply travel out into the cosmic ether. Someone, somewhere, in some future, *could* theoretically receive them. And don't worry," she added with a reassuring smile, "it's totally safe. We've been trying it every day for the past eighteen months, and there have been no side effects seen."
"Hadrian has tried this before," Rena said, "so Sofia and Mr. Dave, you can go first."
---
Meanwhile, unaware of their fate, deep down in the control room, a spy for the enemy was trying to destroy the facility. He had methodically damaged the control center which regulated the electricity, causing a catastrophic overload that would instantaneously fry everything—all equipment and data gone in one master stroke. His objective was total annihilation.
Unaware of his impending fate, Hadrian sat down to try the Multidimensional Frequency Sender for the third time. In the past two years, he'd never once considered this would be his last attempt in this reality. Hadrian felt a searing pain, transitioning from normal sensation to unimaginable agony in a second. He'd heard about life flashing before one's eyes; for him, it wasn't just true, it was a terrifying….