Oscillating Wormhole

"Sir, here's your coffee."

"Just set it down." Liu Sha did not even look up from his magazine, swaying on the swivel chair, very bored.

The intern noticed that his young boss is always bored. Which is understandable, since he doesn't do much in the company anyway. He only attends meetings.... then another meeting..... then another meeting....

He heard his boss used to be a computer engineer like him. He even had developed the VR technology that Shuaige has been secretly distributing to very rich and private investors abroad, some of which are authorities. He heard very scary stories about it...

Like how a certain country's police use it to torture criminals who hold valuable information, making them suffer realistic deaths in hyperrealistic VR, until they finally give up.

The intern shivered, shaking his head. It's no longer his business if that's true. He should focus on his job, and make sure no one knows of his true identity.

He suddenly caught a glimpse of the cover of Liu Sha's magazine. It's an English science magazine, focused on the latest technology and discovery. The cover was a model he was familiar with.

"The Oscillating Universe Theory." He smiled.

"What?" Liu Sha raised an eyebrow at him.

"Oh, it's just the cover, sir. I just noticed that it's a model of the Oscillating Universe Theory." The intern pushed back his long hair. "You know, the idea that the universe doesn't just undergo a Big Bang or a Big Crunch once, but an indefinite cycle of it. Once the universe destroys itself by expanding and contracting, it will be made new again, expanding and contracting again and again."

"Oh really? I have no interest in astrophysics." Liu Sha put down his magazine. "So how many times had the cycle gone already? What number of universe are we on now?"

"No one knows. It's just a theory, sir. We could be on the first, or the 2nd, 3rd... nth universe." The intern's eyes beamed. "Which presents the interesting possibility if the saying 'History repeats itself' being true in a literal sense. All of this could have happened in the universe before, with a few differences."

"So, fate." Liu Sha said.

"Hmm..... Not really, sir. But that's a valid way to put it." The intern rambled excitedly. "There must be a few differences for each universal outcome, so it's better to think about it as versions. The universe is continuously updating, because of these changes. There's also the matter of the wormhole theory...It could only be confirmed that such things are happening if there are individuals who can travel through wormholes...."

"Wormhole theory?" Liu Sha was a little interested now.

"They're like tunnels between space and time. It's a shortcut to travel forward to billions of lightyears, the most logical method to time-traveling we could come up off. Since time is relative, and these shortcuts can turn a lightyear into a mere second, we could 'go to the future'. And if the oscillating universe is true, and there are wormholes that can make us travel to the next universe, in an event that is supposed to be in the past of the current one.....Then that's one we could call 'traveling back in time'."

"But time travel should be more complicated than moving space to space and time to time, right? What about the repercussions?" Liu Sha wouldn't allow this measly intern to just outsmart him, he is a valedictorian his whole life after all.

"What about the grandfather paradox? If I went back in time, and killed my grandfather so my wretched father wouldn't be born, shouldn't I also seize to exist? If I was the person my grandmother fell in love with and had children with, aren't I my own grandfather?"

"I think I may have a solution to that sir, if what we're following is in my Oscillating-Wormhole Theory." The intern said excitedly.

"What is it then?"

"Others have already pointed out this solution without going in-depth with any of the universal origins. All you have to consider is that you did not really travel to the original past, but a copy of it, and the people there are different versions of the people you knew, and you yourself are also a different version once you chose to exist there." The intern said.

"You are not killing your grandfather, you are just killing a man. You are not having children with your grandmother, she's just some other woman."

He continued: "But, with my Oscillating-Wormhole theory, the explanation gets even clearer. When you travel to the wormhole, you are interacting with a completely different universe, but it is a replica of your own that's why everything looks similar. So you don't have to consider ethical problems of.... say.... falling in love with your own mother. Because she's not really your mother, she's someone from the next universe, and they are not the same."

"If we'd look at it in a spiritual way, cycles can cause displacements. For example, you were once a chicken, yet you died and were now possessed the body of a child, who was going to eat that chicken for dinner. Your memories of being a chicken is the only thing putting you in a conundrum of eating it or not, when in fact, you were never that chicken in the first place. Change had happened, and you must align your thinking according to change, letting go of the past to focus on the present."

"I see." Liu Sha nodded, considering this then waved him off. "Do you have other metaphysical or philosophical things to talk about? Or can I now enjoy my coffee in peace without having a headache if I was or wasn't the chicken I ate for dinner last night?"

"Oh, sorry, sir! I didn't mean to cause such a dilemma!" The intern said. "Since everything is a cycle, it could also be that you're the chicken again, living peaceful days before you die and be eaten by a child, thanks to the oscillation. Actually, that's what I've been toying with on my own project."

"People we lost in the past can be 'brought back' to us again. Like my friend, whose grandfathers had unfortunately passed away. It caused him so much grief that he wished he could meet them again, and it only there is a technology that will allow us to do so, to let us travel to a universe that fits everything we wish for, the perfect----"

"Mr. Liu Sha, you're father's looking for you." Another female employee came through the door. "Have you reviewed the client's latest developments from the magazine?"

"I haven't finished it yet, thanks to a certain chatterbox." Liu Sha gave an evil eye to the intern.

"Oh, sorry sir! I didn't know that reading that magazine was so important----"

"Anyway, I'll read it as I go." He handed his cup to the intern. "Make me another coffee when I get back."

"Y-Yes, sir!"

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

This was only one of the few memories Liu Sha could recall about that intern. He couldn't even remember his name, only that he is so loud and noisy all the time, talking about science, science, science. Things he never asked.

But now he wished he paid more attention, since it could be the key to understanding this invention of his more.

He looked at the bunch of screens and wiring in front of him, scowling.

"You and your inventor are just the same. As User Mo Aini would say, 'you're all full of bullshit'." Liu Sha chuckled wrapping his glasses in tape. "I've spent days and months going crazy for this bug, thinking it could be something related to science. What if it's not even something explainable by science? Just plain old karma... magic..... fate?"

He put a hand over his face, sighing. "Heh, I'm fated to never succeed? Fuck that."

He pointed a finger to the machine, laughing like a maniac. "So what!? I'll counter fate itself! I will succeed, just watch me!"

He copied the anomalous database, put it on a hard drive, and prepared the presentation.

"All the old man needs is a reason he can understand anyway, but that doesn't mean it should be TRUE." Liu Sha chuckled. "Why haven't I thought about this before!? I don't need to solve how to get rid of the bug, I just need to get Mo Aini out of there, and restart the whole system again so the bug will die with it. Make another UToPia."

He didn't only prepare for an explanation, but another UTopia like he said, spending weeks of coding and coding. That way, the old man Liu would feel settled after such a loss that the operations can still be continued.

To the rest of the world, this will just be another otome game.

But to Shuaige and its next unfortunate subject after Mo Aini, it will be a whole new different universe created artificially through science. Or is it really created? If all the theories are correct, the right word is discovered.

But the truth behind it doesn't matter. Only its existence. And how you can use it to your advantage. That's Liu Sha's take away from all the intern's ramblings.

Let things be, it is what it is.

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

"And that is why we must eject the 83rd User immediately!"

Liu Sha has done presenting to his father in his office, already running out of breath from speaking 2 hours straight. He picked up a glass of water, and adjusted his glasses, hiding his nervousness with poise and professionality.

Mr. Liu Shui, aka Mr. Running Water of the business enterprise community, was a 50-year-old man with graying hair and a large stomach. He also had glasses identical to his son's. He finished watching this meticulously made presentation without any change in his face, showing that he truly is a man who will win poker for 3 rounds straight and bring people to bankruptcy.

He doesn't know much about science, but still dealt with it anyway. Because he knows in the language of economics, science is the future of wealth. If you want to make it big, invest in technology, and wait to reap so much in your retirement years.

He was right. But because he lacks the knowledge, he always had to have someone dumb it down for him. And he's willing to listen for hours and hours of the dumbed-down version, as long as it is worth his money.

"So what you are saying is that any experiment in this UToPia is useless because of the 'bug', the problem?" He spoke after a few moments of consideration.

"Yes. So let's stop operations now, eject and change user." Liu Sha made a triumphant smile. "I already created a new sandbox so we can just find an 84th user and we can continue with a new hook and bait as well---"

"Whoah, whoah, calm down, boy." Mr. Liu chuckled. "I said that I agree that the operations must be stopped for a moment, and we must start a new UToPia box, but I didn't say anything about letting your boy crush free!"

Liu Sha shut his mouth, digging his nails deep on his own palm. He really hates the way this stupid fat old man uses his words against him...

"Father, this bug may bring danger to the User. Are you willing to ignore the ethical problems with this if you course major damage to his health..... or much worse?"

He is spouting nonsense now, but it's not just his father who has a poker face. As much as he hates it, it seems to be a trait he inherited, the ability to bluff as easily as he breathes.

"True. And that's exactly why..." Liu Shui smiled at him. "We must move him to this new UToPia you created and continue the experiments there. Give him a new bait to hook."

Liu Sha blinked. "But father----"

"What reason can you come up again, Liu Sha?" He stood up, finishing the glass of water his son has half-finished, big stomach wiggling. "Ah..... It's a very easy solution, and I'm glad you were able to solve it beforehand. I don't have to put all those millions of yuan I expended for User Mo to waste, just continue experimenting with him longer. I'm sure you can come up with a good explanation to him on why he will move, without revealing our purpose."

He patted his shoulder. "I trust in you, son."

And left, closing the door.

As he left, Liu Sha yelled, ruining his well-arranged hair. "DO NOT CALL ME SON!"

He destroyed the whole office, clearing the table with one swipe, breaking the glass!

But once his tantrum was finished, dread overcome him. It was a hopeless case. As long as he is under this building's roof.....

He is under that bastard's control.

Then.... why not escape?

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