Interlude II

Pov ???:

After I was done tweaking and debugging the 'code' that ran the universe, I smashed the 'enter button' and sat back to watch the results of my handiwork.

The entire world disintegrated and collapsed to a point before suddenly exploding outward in a brilliant light show.

I decided to record this beautiful event and use it as a wallpaper or something.

"Sigh, too bad for the previous world though."

Technically, I could have easily restored it to it's previous state but unfortunately I had no idea what that state was. I'd have to analyze the entire world particle by particle before slowly rebuilding it according to what I find.

It's like a giant jigsaw puzzle only each piece is smaller than an atom. That is way too much work and I was not that bored.

It would be a lot easier to just create a brand new world from scratch, which is exactly what I did.

Break down everything into their base constituents, compress the base elements together, stir them up a little, release them and see what comes out. While doing this will take a lot longer than simply creating whatever I want, the randomness makes it more interesting. If nothing interesting comes out I'll just redo the entire thing.

Time is an insignificant factor.

"Patience is something I have in abundance."

*Leans forward with steepled fingers*

"I can wait."

'''

3rd pov:

Earth.

19.05.2023.

United States of America.

California Institute of Technology.

Feynman Lecture Hall.

The entire hall was filled with lively freshmen attending their first class of the semester. They all had a head full of thick lush hair, rosy faces and bright eyes filled with big dreams for the future. Each of them was aspiring to be a world leading scientist possibly making great scientific breakthroughs and becoming the next Einstein.

Poor things.

Currently all of them were seated with their backs straight paying their full attention to the professor speaking from the lectern while taking notes every now and then.

Since the the first class was just an introductory lesson, everyone was slightly relaxed.

The professor, a lanky man in a slightly oversized suit and a balding head, was talking enthusiastically trying to to get the freshmen interested in the course.

He was speaking loudly almost screaming, with spit flying everywhere and a crazy look in his eyes,

" Our whole universe was in a hot dense state then nearly 14 billion years ago, expansion started. The Earth began to cool, the autotrophs began to drool, Neanderthals developed tools, We built a wall,we built the pyramids. Math, science, history, unraveling the mystery that all started with a big bang. Since the dawn of man is really not that long... "

Among the crowd, 6 rows in from the back and sitting in the middle column was another student listening attentively to the lecture while fiddling with their pen. They appeared to be around 20 years old and the only interesting thing about them was that they weren't interesting.

The student, a man, was the the kind of person you'd meet in an elevator or a cafe and maybe even have a nice conversation with them only to completely forget about it in the next second. Neither tall nor short, not fat but not skinny either. He's not exactly ugly but you wouldn't define him as handsome either, he had a face that only looks good from a particular angle.

He was the kind of person you'd have trouble describing, not because he was too outstanding or bizarre but simply because nothing comes to mind. A textbook definition of the word average.

Perhaps the only thing of note about him would be his eyes. They were not unique or special in any particular way. They were just a pair of ordinary eyes but they had a certain depth to them. They were the kind of eyes that appeared to have seen everything there was to see. Looking into those eyes would give one a strong feeling of inadequacy and make one feel exposed. They beared a weight that would make anyone feel a deep sense of insignificance.

Like a random pebble on the road.

Completly worthless.

Fortunately the man was wearing tinted glasses with no frame. Whether he required them or not was up for debate.

"...as every galaxy is expanding ever outward but one day, it will pause and collapse inward, we won't be here, it won't be heard but it'll make an even bigger bang and the cycle will begin anew. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes."

The professor had gradually calmed down as the lecture drew to a close. He slowly fixed his clothes and habitually stroked the remaining strands of hair on his head while giving his final remarks before dismissing the class. The unassuming man slowly gathered his things and joined the freshmen in slowly filing out of the class.

Walking out and feeling the warm morning sun on his face, the man stretched his limbs with a gentle smile on his face and just enjoyed the moment for a while.

Listening to the lively students chattering about all sorts of things, some walking in groups and others by their lonesome, the man heaved a long nostalgic sigh.

Looking at the multi-story concrete buildings and the cars driving around in the distance, the man had a reminiscent look in his eyes. He tilted his head and looked up at the helicopter flying over head for sometime before sighing heavily once more.

"To think that just the other day these delicate little things were getting bullied by lizards while beating each other up with sticks. Fascinating, truly fascinating."

He gathered his books under his armpits and started walking again. A bubbly-looking redhead girl going the opposite way waved at him with a bright smile. He smiled back and gave her a subtle nod as they passed each other.

The man lowered his head and pushed his glasses up. The polite smile from earlier looked a bit creepy from the shadows.

"I wonder what they'll do next? They better come up for something interesting soon. Or I will. Hehehehe."

The cheerly redhead had a sudden sense of crisis and a chill run down her spine. Turning around she saw the back of the student she just passed and felt her hair stand on end.

Cold sweat was forming on her forehead and her hands started trembling despite the relatively warm weather. A hand grabbing her from behind startled her and she turned her head so fast that her neck made a terrifying crack. The girl that had just touched her was so frightened she jumped back with high-pitched shriek.

"What the hell Pam?!"

The redhead, now identified as Pam, calmed down after seeing who it was.

"Sorry,"

Pam mumbled with a slightly hoarse voice.

"Are you okay?"

Seeing her friend sweating and looking pale, the blonde girl, closed the distance and placed the back of her palm against Pam's forehead.

"Yeah,"

Pam answered in a distracted tone.

Looking back, she discovered that the creepy student was nowhere to be seen. Trying to remember what the guy looked liked Pam was frightened to realize that she had no idea.

'But, how. I literally just saw him right now. Why can't-'

"PAM!"

"What?"

She broke out of her daze and and answered after swallowing the lump in her throat.

"I've been calling your name multiple times now and you didn't respond. Are you sure you're okay? Maybe we should go for a check-up."

Hearing the concern in her friend's voice, Pam took a deep breath and glanced behind her before shaking her head.

"No, I'm fine. It's nothing."

"Are you sure? We could skip the remaining classes and go home to rest."

Taking another look behind her, Pam tried to give her a friend a reassuring smile but it looked strained.

"It's nothing Amy, don't worry. I'm fine."

The blonde, Amy, stretched her neck to look behind Pam before giving her a skeptical look.

"If you say so."

"Come on, let's hurry before we get late for the next class."

Pam, now back to her usual bubbly self grabbed Amy's hand and dragged her to the next class.

"Ugh, I hate Mechanics."

"Come on, it's not that bad."

"That's what she said."

" What?"

" What?"