8. Severed Unreality

The two Garricks sat down and the older one grabbed some water for the two of them. "What have you learned from this dimension, older me?" He asked. 

"Well, for starters, the Green Lake acts as a tear through the fabric of space-time, breaching through the space between worlds. After countless research, this liquid contains what I call Zero Particles." 

"I've heard of the Zero Mass Theory where a particle can break through the space-time fabric without causing environmental destruction. I never knew they were real. I just called it the Union Slime." He was astonished. 

"Hahaha I just called it that when I was your age. These particles can form bonds with other subatomic particles and form this slimy substance that can cause unspeakable damage to non-human organic life." Older him said. 

"But that doesn't explain what happened here? I mean sure the Lake can cause damage but not to this scale. Was there an incident?" Older me was stunned but expected that to be the case from his younger self. 

The dimension young Garrick was in wasn't originally like this. The apocalyptic event started 10 years ago. The parallel version of him explored the Peninsula Olallie Lake in Oregon where the whole lake became Green and has been closed off to the public. 

He performed some research on this mysterious liquid and conducted several tests. And months later, Garrick created a small laboratory and a campsite for his research colleagues consisting of theoretical physicists, chemists, and astrophysics as they spent months here conducting more research on this strange Lake. 

2 years later, they made a discovery and that was the Zero Particle to which Garrick and his team won the Nobel Prize in Physics. It was a celebration that would've changed the very understanding of the universe. 

That would be the case until the next few months on the first of February. Garrick and his research colleagues went back to the Green Lake. 

The group decided to jump in the lake and see what happens. Garrick and the others rejected this decision as the Zero Particles was still unstable. But the rest argued that it's safe as it didn't react with particles that have mass. The other who wanted to jump ignored their warnings and jumped in the pool.

On this day, marked the apocalypse. A surging energy riled up inside the Lake as the swimmers swam back to the surface. Before they knew it, a bright light emerged and shined with the power of a thousand suns. It illuminated the entire solar system and lasted for 5 seconds. 

Garrick woke up and saw his friends incinerated into ashes. Everything was now barren. Trees were hollowed up shells, animals ceased to exist and everything stood still. Humanity was wiped out in a single moment, and only Garrick was able to survive. 

That brings the two back to the present. "Zero Particles can break space-time by just interacting with humans. They have similar properties as the Higgs Boson only that this particle breaks space-time." Young Garrick noted. 

"Then what have you been doing then?" He asked his older self. 

"To be honest, It's tough to live here now. Even growing food here is hard due to the disappearance of all microorganisms, except inside me. Means I even can't get sick here." He sighed as he grabbed a normal pistol. "Even tried to end myself but for some reason, it won't allow me my death." 

"I jumped in the Lake and ended up here. And as far as I'm aware, my universe didn't die. Because my intuition would know and my watch." Young Garrick said which caused the Old Garrick to ponder into that info. 

He stood up and went to his TV screen. He grabbed something behind the screen and it was a canister, filled with the same green liquid from the Lake. "Let me ask you a question: Do you know what is the space between the dimensions?" He asked him. 

"It is a realm of nothingness, a true void. It separates universes from creating a Universal Unreality Chaos Event." He answered. 

"I've tinkered with this fluid for 5 whole years. I've seen how it interacts with the space-time continuum and how it can be possible to cross other universe like the situation you got yourself into." He also grabbed a rocket launcher from behind the TV but it was modified and custom-built. 

"But I've also theorized how these particles can possibly sever the protective barrier against the Void, thanks to the Zero Mass Theory." Young Garrick had a nervous feeling about his parallel self. 

"The loneliness from this place would drive anyone mad. What's worse is that the laws of Death would not even let me die. So I figure why not obliterate this universe?" Young Garrick saw his older self being driven into insanity. 

"What about the other life out there in this universe? Are you really going to kill everybody here just to end your torment?" He asked himself but his older self smiled and shed a small tear. 

"That's the thing. This universe has already been dead. I've searched everywhere and found nothing. Civilizations erased, countless cities left standing, and all life wiped out. Now it's just entropy slowly taking over this whole dimension." He looked at himself with such pain and torment. 

Young Garrick understood what he had to do. Entering here was just a big mistake on his part. "But it's a good thing you're here, me. You here would've drove me further to insanity." 

"Why not enter our universe? Back to the Green Lake?" He asked him but he shook his head. 

"Too much uncertainties and risks. I like to risk my life but when there's a lot of uncounted risks and a lot of uncertain results, that's not what my logical mind would result to. Even you know it right?" He said.

Young Garrick didn't want to admit it but he's right on that part. Even he already figured out that jumping in the Lake was already a big enough risk and had to rely on luck.