Quantum immortal

Despite her youth, Aerie was convinced that the apparition before her was indeed a younger version of herself. However, her mind was a tumultuous sea of confusion as she struggled to comprehend the reason behind the appearance of her own younger self.

"Come to think of it... I ended up at the orphanage when I was nine and had no memories of my early years. I was simply diagnosed with Amnesia ever since," Aerie muttered.

Aerie stood frozen. Her eyes were transfixed on the surreal scene unfolding before her. Two shadowy figures dragged her younger self, who seemed to be in a state of shock, across the gleaming white floor towards a menacing metallic chair. Aerie's heart pounded in her chest as she watched in horror, unable to intervene as her younger self was strapped into the cold chair. Aerie couldn't comprehend how the younger version of herself could allow this to happen without putting up any resistance. The confusion on her face was palpable.

"Why is this one quiet?" Jerold asked.

"We caught her peeking inside." One of the guard members answered. "It seems that she accepted her fate."

"Tch tch... if it was that easy, they, I would make every kid watch..." Jerold muttered.

As the younger Aerie offered no resistance, the inevitability of her impending doom seemed to accelerate with each passing moment. The young Aerie's lack of protest only served to intensify the feeling of helplessness and despair that filled the air.

Once again, Jerold and his staff members went through the same gruesome procedures that had claimed the life of the previous victim. Lilith stood by, her heart pounding in her chest as she bore witness to the ghastly scene unfolding before her. She knew deep down that there was nothing she could do to stop this. Aerie was only a spectator.

As the black and white screen flickered to life, its harsh glow illuminating the darkened room, Aerie's heart sank. The constant ticking of the timer filled the air like a deafening drumbeat, marking the passage of time as it counted down to an inevitable and terrifying conclusion. With each tick, Aerie felt as though she were hurtling toward the edge of a precipice, the abyss yawning open beneath her feet. Unable to bear the mounting tension, she averted her gaze, turning her eyes away.

The interminable ticking of the timer continued unabated. Her nerves were taut and stretched to their breaking point as she waited for the inevitable sound of the shot that would signal the end of her younger self's life. But the rifle remained still, only pointing at the young Aerie's head. Aeire's heart was pounding in her chest as she raised her head, expecting to see the worst, but what she saw left her stunned. The younger Aerie was unscathed, as though the bullet that should have ended her life had passed harmlessly through her. A sense of disbelief washed over Aeire as she struggled to reconcile what she saw with the reality that she had expected.

Aerie's eyes then focused on the black and white screen, which it projected the sight of the young Aerie being shot in the head over and over again. With each tick of the watch, the young Aerie on the screen had gotten shot in the head, then the young Aerie reverted back, intact. Then was shot again. This happened over and over again.

With each tick of the watch, the scene reset itself, like some twisted game that was being played for an unknown audience. Aerie felt as though she were trapped in a nightmare, watching helplessly as the same grisly tableau played out again and again. The young Aerie's body seemed to shimmer and waver, like a mirage in the desert, as she was restored to her original state, only to be struck down once more by the merciless bullet. The cycle of death and resurrection seemed to go on for an eternity.

"Haha...!" Jeriold sprang to his feet with a look of triumph etched onto his features, his fist clenched in a gesture of victory. "I've created it. A quantum immortal!"

A deafening explosion shattered the stillness of the room, shaking the very foundations of the building and sending tremors racing through the walls. The other members of Jeriold's staff were also staring at one another, their faces twisted in a mix of shock and apprehension.

Jeriold then pressed a button on the control panel and spoke into it. "Secreity what happened outside? Security? Answer."

The door burst open with a resounding crash, sending splinters of wood flying in all directions. A squad of heavily-armed soldiers streamed into the room, their boots pounding against the floor in a synchronized cadence that filled the air with a staccato beat. Each of them bore the emblem of the United Union on their shoulders, the colors of the flag vivid and bright against the muted background of their uniforms.

"On the ground, Imperial dogs!" One of the soldiers shouted, forcing Jerold onto his knees.

'What are the United Union doing here?!' Aerie's eyes widened in a sudden burst of surprise.

Aerie's vision began to swirl like a whirlpool. The edges of her vision grew hazy and indistinct. As she struggled to stay upright, her consciousness began to slip away. With a final gasp of breath, she felt herself falling, falling, falling...

Aerie's eyelids fluttered open to reveal Ellia's kind face hovering above her. Ellia's fingers traced gentle patterns across Aerie's skin, like the delicate flutter of butterfly wings. It was as if every stroke of her fingertips was a healing balm, soothing away all the pain and fear that Aerie had experienced. As Aerie's gaze focused, she realized that she was cradled in Ellia's embrace, her head nestled against the soft swell of her thigh like a baby being held by its mother.

"Eh...?" Aerie jolted awake, her body shooting upright. Her senses were heightened, every sound and sensation amplified as if she had been plunged into a new world.

"Oh, are you awake?" Ellia spoke.

"How long was I out?" Aerie asked.

"Only for a few minutes."

"I see..." Aerie rubbed her chin, then turned to face Ellia. "Do you know what quantum immortal is?"

Ellia looked at Aerie with a quizzical expression, wondering why she had asked such a seemingly random question. Despite her confusion, she turned to Ruth and inquired about the answer.

"The concept of a "quantum immortal" posits that a person's identity and consciousness can be preserved beyond death through a process called quantum entanglement. If a person's consciousness were to become entangled with a quantum system, such as an electron or a photon, at the moment of death, the entangled state could persist over time, effectively preserving the person's identity."

"For example, if a cat were to die from a falling pot, its consciousness would be preserved and be sent to a parallel universe where the pot only narrowly missed the cat's head, and live life as if nothing happened. To the cat, it might have simply seemed lucky. But there is nothing that can stop death by aging as it happens in all parallel universes leaving no place for the consciousness to go to."

Ellia spoke word for word of what Ruth said.

"However, it's only a hypothesis that is purely speculative and lacks any evidence to support it." Ellia chuckled.

'Maybe not...' Aerie thought.