An unimaginable distance away from the Nexus point of entry (referred to as P.O.E) the homeworlds continued their silent journeys around their system star, Omnes. On Aurora the sun had begun to set, revealing the trademark atmospheric patterns of color from which the planet got it's name.

Dmitri Petrov struggled with an equation that would finally resolve the physics of entering a wormhole once and for all. It had been an issue for centuries and, to date, no one had been able to solve the fundamental and elementary problem that would unlock the secrets inside the wormhole. The problem that had to be solved before research could go any further: what happens at the event horizon?

He looked out into the Auroran landscape of buildings and hover transports going to and fro underneath the Auroran lights in the sky from his place on the thirtieth floor of the Tower of Science, a large nano-structure whose exterior was made entirely of glass. It was, of course, impossible to see through that glass from the other side, but for those who had made it into these sacred walls, there was little that was hidden from them. He walked closer to the window and looked down. A raging sandstorm was punishing the lower floors. He had worked hard to ascend to this level. Every floor up in your job afforded you a higher floor in your living situation. Every floor had an exit to a hover terminal, so that one rarely visited more than a few floors up or a few floors down without a summons. He had ascended the lower floors easily, standing out amongst the other junior scientists in his division. He had come to feel needed, supported. But in recent years, his ascent had been slower. Studying wormholes wasn't novel any more. Younger scientists with new theories were opening up new doors and ascending to higher floors than he. It was because he and his wormhole colleagues were stuck, and while Auroran society rewarded progress, it punished stagnation.

Worse still, theoretical research in recent years had created more questions than answers. The Tower of Science could get probes in and out of wormholes now, but the interpretations of the data were fiercely contested. To make matters even more complicated, Dmitri himself, considered the head authority on the subject, supported many of the theories, contending that wormholes were like planets and stars, varied and special. It was the least popular theory of them all.

He closed his eyes, as he was wont to do when he felt terse, and tried to imagine what it would be like to go inside of one. It was ridiculous, of course. It was unthinkable that the government would ever consent to such a dangerous thing. However, it helped to calm his nerves when he considered the mathematical majesty and power of such an occurrence.

This time, he imagined his approach to the wormhole. Realities would begin to split and diverge. Assuming he wasn't destroyed instantly by radiation and other present forces, perhaps he could do things that he could never do before. Have two different lines of thought at the same time. Make two different decisions that lead to two different lives. Be two different people.

Of course, would both people be the same person? What would happen if he met the other him. Would both even be real, or would one be a mere hologram of the other, created at the point of entry into the wormhole? He sighed. For the first time in a long time this wasn't making Dmitri feel better.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

A small bell sounded, and a message showed on the nano-crystal laced glass of the window he was looking out of.

"Visitor for Dmitri Petrov. Permission to open door?"

"Permission granted," Dmitri said, turning around. Perhaps a colleague from another floor or scientific division needed assistance with an esoteric piece of information within the purview of Dmitri's expertise. Strangely, when he turned around it was not a man in a lab coat he saw, but an older man, perhaps a little younger than him, in a business suit. The man had a stern expression and eyes that held the glint of intellect. His body radiated confidence and uncomprimising strength as he stepped through the door. This was no scientist.

"Dmitri Petrov?" The man said.

"Yes. That is me. How may I help you?"

"I think we can help each other," the man said, looking around the room at the various holo panels and virutal vials.

"Oh?"

The man smiled a curt smile. "Yes. I believe we could use your assistance. I also believe we can give you access to something you have wanted for a very long time."

"And what is that?" Dmitri asked. Was this a representative from one of the upper floor families? If so, he wasn't interested. If he did ever make it to one of the top floors, it would be as an equal to those there, not a well-paid slave.

"The inside of a wormhole," the man said.

Dmitri was stunned. It had to be too good to be true. No, it was clearly a lie.

"But can you take that risk, Dmitri?"

Dmitri nearly jumped out of his own skin.

"What?"

"You were thinking that I was lying. It was all over your face. Honestly, you're as transparent as my son. One of them, anyway."

"Who are you?"

"I'm Garret Vance and I work for a clandestine organization called HQ."

--------------------------------------------

Garret Vance rode the hover transport down to the thirtieth floor terminal of the Tower of Science. He was not a man prone to either worry or fear, but the current state of things left him very displeased. Very displeased, indeed. His first son was who knew where, and the second had been dragged into a wormhole. If this continued, his legacy would be destroyed.

Oh and, of course, humanity would be extinguished.

Currently, he was on his way to secure the help of a man whose help should have been secured in the first place: Dmitri Petrov. Garret had made too many enemies in the years of his long ascent from middle floors to highest floors, and it was coming back to haunt him now. People at HQ weren't listening: they were too damn busy playing their petty political games. That was alright, however. In the end, even these would come to serve Garret's purpose.

Garret tapped an invisible button on his suit's pocket.

"Yes sir?" a voice said in his ear as his transport landed at the thirtieth floor terminal.

"Have the mind wipe team prepped. In case Dmitri rejects my offer."

"Already done," the voice in his ear said.