Chapter 4: The Ripple Begins
Chapter 4: The Ripple Begins
The void collapsed around them, yanking Eli and Samara back into the lab with a jolt. The soft hum of the time machine thrummed in the background, the countdown clock stopped at zero.
Eli reeled, grasping at the edge of the console for purchase. Samara hunched against the wall, her breathing heavy, eyes wide and unblinking.
"Was that. real?" she asked, barely above a whisper.
Eli said nothing for a moment, glowering at the machine as he tried to piece together the figure's cryptic warnings. "I don't know. But if it was. we're in trouble for more than fix-the-past stuff."
Samara pushed off the wall, smoothing herself out. "No. Don't let them push your buttons. Whoever they were, part of their job was scaring us. We built this machine to do something, not to walk away.
Eli wavered. The images of devastation, of the older version of himself, still clung to his mind. But the steely texture in Samara's eyes was infectious.
"You're right," he said, finally straightening. "We don't stop. Not now."
Samara strode to the console, her fingers racing across the keys. "The anomaly disrupted our jump, but the core systems remain stable. We can recalculate and try again.
He nodded at Eli, trying to force himself to focus. "Let's double-check the anchor points; if we overshoot again, there's no telling where we'll end up."
The lab was a flurry of activity for the next few hours. They recalibrated the machine, adjusted the temporal stabilizers, and cross-referenced calculations. It was exhausting, but it kept them grounded, giving them something tangible to hold onto.
Finally, Samara leaned back in her chair, blowing out a sharp breath. "Okay. Coordinates are locked. This time, we're hitting the exact moment we planned."
Eli stared hard at the glowing display, the date and time seared into his brain: March 12, 2027, 8:47 PM.
The moment Anna had called him. The moment everything had changed.
He took a deep breath and stepped into the chamber. Samara joined him, her face unreadable.
"You ready?" she asked.
"Ready as I'll ever be," he replied.
She pressed the activation button, and the world dissolved into light.
March 12, 2027 – The First Change
The air was crisp, the faint scent of spring flowers mingling with the hum of traffic. Eli stumbled slightly as the jump completed, the disorienting sensation of time travel leaving him momentarily dazed.
Samara caught his arm, steadying him. "We're here."
Eli glanced around. They were standing in the alley behind his old apartment building. The streetlights flickered overhead, casting long shadows across the pavement.
"This is it," he whispered; his voice husky with emotion.
Samara's gaze was sharp. "We got one shot at this. You know the rules. No unnecessary contact. No ripple effects."
Eli nodded, his heart pounding, yet he knew the risks-one wrong move, and they could unravel far more than they intended.
They crept toward the apartment building, slipping in through the side entrance Eli knew would be open. The stairs, familiar underfoot, creaked with a weight of remembered steps; he forced the memories aside. Concentrate.
When they reached his door, Eli wavered. On the other side of it, his younger self sat hunched over the desk, unaware of the significance of the night.
"You sure about this?" Samara asked.
Eli nodded. "I have to be."
He pulled out a small device—a temporal interface designed to send just one message back in time without causing too many irreparable alterations to the timeline. The plan was simple: leave a voicemail for his younger self, telling him to answer Anna's call.
Eli put the device to the door and programmed the message with shaking fingers.
"Eli," Samara said softly-an uncharacteristic gentleness to her tone. "If this works, it changes everything. Are you ready for that?"
He turned toward her; his eyes were hopeful and fearful. "I don't know. But I have to try."
With a deep breath, he activated the device. A faint hum filled the air as the message transmitted across time, embedding itself into the voicemail system of his younger self's phone.
"It's done," Eli whispered, stepping back.
Samara grabbed his arm. "We need to go. Now.
The timeline was already shifting—Eli could feel it. The air around them seemed heavier, the world vibrating with the tension of change.
As they turned to leave, Eli caught a glimpse of his younger self through the window. He was reaching for his phone, his brow furrowed as he listened to the voicemail.
A surge of hope filled Eli's chest. Maybe this would work. Maybe this time, Anna would live.
Back to the Present
The jump back was rougher than before. Eli and Samara stumbled out of the chamber, their heads spinning.
"What happened?" Eli asked, clutching the console for support.
Samara was already scanning the system logs. "The ripple effect. it's bigger than we thought. The timeline is stabilizing, but it's going to take time to see the full extent of the changes."
Eli's heart pounded. "What do we do now?"
"We wait," Samara said grimly. "And we prepare. If the figure was right, there could be consequences we haven't accounted for."
Before Eli could respond, the lab door slammed open. A man in a dark suit strode in, his face cold and unreadable.
"Dr. Renner. Dr. Hayes," the man said, his voice sharp. "You've crossed a line you can't uncross."
Eli and Samara exchanged a glance, their stomachs sinking.
"Who are you?" Samara persisted.
The man pulled out a badge; the emblem shone with a soft light under the lousy illumination. "Agent Lucian Graves. Temporal Enforcement Division."
Eli's blood ran cold; he had heard of them-agency responsible for policing the timestream, making sure nobody messed with history.
"You've made a mistake," Graves said as his eyes narrowed. "And I'm here to make sure you don't make another one.