Chapter 2: Arrival at CERN

Steven Haking had long wondered about the deepest mysteries of the universe. For decades, his brilliant mind had explored the realms of black holes, quantum physics, and the possibility of alternate dimensions. Now, as he arrived at CERN for the latest round of experiments on the Large Hadron Collider, he felt a familiar tingle of excitement in the air.

The experiment today was meant to push the limits of known physics even further than before, testing a theory that could prove the existence of parallel universes. Dark matter would collide with unprecedented force, hopefully revealing ripples in the fabric of spacetime itself. Haking, though bound by the wheelchair and his degenerative illness, felt his thoughts racing faster than ever.

"This could be the one," he whispered through his voice synthesizer, his eyes gleaming with anticipation. "If there's a moment when we might see into other dimensions, it is now."

The collider was soon activated, its massive rings humming to life beneath the surface. Haking watched from the control room, surrounded by a team of physicists and engineers. The room buzzed with the energy of the moment, everyone on edge as they waited for the results. The experiment was set to achieve collisions of particles at unimaginable energy levels, creating conditions akin to the birth of the universe itself.

The countdown began. "Three… two… one… initiate."

The first collision was a success. Beams of protons smashed together with a blinding light. Data flooded the screens, numbers and graphs that should have made sense to those watching, but something was off. A crackling noise filled the air, and suddenly the monitors began to flicker.

"Energy levels are spiking—far above what we expected!" shouted Dr. Miller, the lead scientist.

Haking's eyes narrowed. This wasn't just a malfunction. Something had gone terribly wrong.

Before anyone could react, an ear-splitting roar filled the room. The ground shook violently, and Haking's wheelchair tipped over, throwing him to the floor. The collider, miles underground, had begun to unravel. The forces they had unleashed spiraled out of control, a chain reaction of energy tearing through the facility.

"Shut it down!" someone screamed, but it was too late.

A massive explosion tore through CERN, ripping apart the collider and sending shockwaves through the surrounding earth. Everything went black. In that brief moment, Steven Haking felt the world slip away.

There was no pain. No fear. Just… nothing.

But then, something strange happened.

Haking became aware of a presence. He was still conscious, still thinking, but his body was gone. He felt weightless, unbound by his physical limitations. It was as if the explosion had severed the final tether keeping him in the world he had always known.

"Am I dead?" he thought, expecting silence.

Instead, a soft light surrounded him. At first, it was subtle, like the faint glow before dawn, but it grew stronger with each passing second. Slowly, Haking realized he wasn't in darkness at all—he had crossed over to somewhere else.

He could see the remnants of the world he had left behind, CERN lying in ruins, the scientists desperately trying to recover from the disaster. But there was a veil between them and where he now stood, a barrier that was not physical, but metaphysical. He was no longer part of that universe.

He had crossed into another.

At first, it was difficult to comprehend. Haking, a man of science, had spent his life studying the nature of reality, yet here he was—his consciousness, his soul—existing beyond the physical world.

The light around him began to shift, like a prism breaking into colors that weren't part of any spectrum he had ever seen. He felt his mind expanding, becoming more aware of the vastness around him. He was no longer just Steven Haking; he was part of something greater. Something infinite.

The space he was in was not empty. Other souls, or beings of energy, floated nearby, shimmering with a life force that pulsed in rhythms he could feel. They were like him—entities that had crossed over from different realities. And that's when it hit him. The experiment at CERN hadn't just gone wrong; it had torn open a rift between universes. The explosion had catapulted him into a different plane of existence entirely.

"I've crossed into a space in between universes," he thought. And in this place, the rules of time, space, and matter no longer applied.

Suddenly, an overwhelming sense of understanding washed over him. The questions he had pondered for so long—about black holes, quantum mechanics, the nature of time—were no longer theoretical. He could see the answers, feel them in the fabric of this new reality. Here, in this universe of souls, everything was interconnected. Time wasn't linear; it flowed in every direction, folding upon itself. Dimensions layered over one another, and Haking could sense them, like the pages of a book he had never fully understood until now.

The souls around him communicated, not with words, but with thoughts, ideas that moved faster than light. One of them approached—a being of pure energy, yet familiar in a way Haking couldn't place.

"Who are you?" Haking thought, and the being responded.

"I am a traveler, like you. I have crossed over from a different universe, long ago."

The concept of "time" felt irrelevant here, but Haking still grasped it. This being, this traveler, had come from another version of existence, perhaps one where the laws of physics differed entirely from his own.

"What is this place?" Haking asked, or rather, projected.

"This is the space between worlds," the traveler answered. "A realm where souls, consciousness, and energy exist beyond matter. You are here because the rift between your universe and others was torn open. But now, you have access to all of them."

Haking understood. CERN's experiment had done more than just collapse a collider—it had collapsed the boundaries between universes. And now, he was free to explore them.

"Can I go back?" he wondered aloud.

"Your physical form is gone, but your consciousness is not bound by that limitation. You are part of the multiverse now. You can traverse its layers, explore its depths. There are endless realities, Steven."

And in that moment, Steven Haking, who had spent his entire life studying the universe from a single point of view, realized that he was now part of the universe itself. He could move between dimensions, witness worlds that existed beyond human comprehension. He had transcended the limitations of time, space, and even death.

For the first time in many years, Steven Haking felt truly free. Free to explore, to learn, to understand the mysteries of existence not as an observer, but as a participant in the very fabric of reality.

The multiverse stretched out before him, infinite and unknown. And with a sense of awe, he ventured into its depths, knowing that he had crossed over to a place where the journey of discovery would never end.